First Encounters
by Judge-Douglas-Mason
Summary: BS. Jim recounts how he and Sara first met and how they came to be together.
1. Default Chapter

I had to pull this and another story because, in my infinite wisdom, I took my knock-out pills and got the chapter updates mixed up. Let this be a lesson to all you insomniacs out there;  
AFTER YOU TAKE YOUR AMBIEN GET OFFLINE IMMEDIATELY!

Disclaimer: I lay no claim to Jim Brass, wish I did, but I don't.  
(Some of Sara's actions are typically uncharacteristic, because this is the side of Sara that Jim sees, and not the side of herself that she projects to others.)

Jim Brass sits alone in his house waiting for Sara to come home. They both got off of work at the same time, but for some reason she is late. He doesn't think much of it, they don't always  
get home at the same time. Sometimes she works late and just sleeps at the lab. He misses her when she sleeps at the lab, but luckily for him, she does not do it often.

He decides to go to sleep and hopes that she comes home this morning. He undresses and slips beneath the covers. As soon as his head hits the pillow he is asleep. He dreams sweet dreams  
of the woman he loves. He dreams of the first time they met.  
()

Jim sits in the break room of the Las Vegas Crime Lab reading a magazine on outdoor life, camping, fishing, etc. He was engrossed in a particularly good article on camp sites in Nevada,  
when he suddenly smells a sweet scent of lilac. He turns his head to see who has just entered the room and his eyes fix on the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. She walks to the coffee  
pot and pours herself a cup and walks to the table and asks if the seat next to him is taken.

"Is this seat taken?" she asks  
"Its all yours." He says as he pulls the chair out for her  
"Ah, chivalry is not dead, I see." She comments as she sits beside him.

She sips her coffee as her eyes wander to the magazine he is reading. He feels her eyes on him. He looks out of the corner of his eye to see her reading along with him. He lays the magazine  
on the table and turns to her.

"Wanna share?" he asks  
"Sure. I love camping. There's something about nature that totally appeals to me."

They sit and read the article together. Mid article, he realizes that he has no idea who she is, and he introduces himself.

"I'm sorry, I should introduce myself. I'm Jim Brass, homicide detective." He says  
"I know who you are. My name is Sara, Sara Sidle. I'm the new hire." She says sweetly. "You planning a trip?"  
"Well, I have some time saved up and was thinking about going to the mountains for a few days of camping, fishing and recharging myself from all this ugliness."

She smiles as he begins to turn the page and places her hand on his and tells him, "Hey, not yet, I'm not done."

He waits patiently for her to finish reading and then he allows her to turn the page for him. Her hands are so pale and soft, they're beautiful. He rises and leaves her with the magazine as he  
excuses himself to his office. As he leaves the room he turns to see that she is looking at him. She winks at him as he exits the room. When he reaches his office, he closes the door behind  
him and sinks into his high backed leather swiveling desk chair. He turns on the radio and hears some Neil Diamond tune playing. He closes his eyes and immediately Sara pops into his head. Her long brown hair falling down around her face and her porcelain like skin, her height and her alluring aroma; he could not quite place it at first but it came to him as he heard a knock on his door. He snapped out of his day dream to see Sara peeking her head in through the door.

"Hey, I just wanted to return this to you." She says as she places the magazine on his desk.  
"No problem. Do you like outdoors stuff?"  
"Yes, definitely, everything except hunting."  
"I'm not much for hunting either." He says.  
"I'm sorry, have a seat." He says as he kicks a chair back from his desk so she can sit.

"Wow, twice in one day."  
"What?"  
"Twice in one day, a man has pulled a chair out for me. Is this a common thing out here?"  
"No, I was just brought up right." He says with a grin.  
"So, you're the new hire, when do you start?"  
"Not for a week. I just came in to orient myself with the lab."  
"Well, I know its short notice, and you don't really know me, but I'm going camping for a few days, if you want, you can come with."

"I've done my research, I know a bit about you, enough to know that you're not a threat." She said smiling  
"Really, what did your research tell you about me?"

Sara sat back in her chair and lightly rubber her chin before speaking.

"I know you have a teen aged child, you used to be a cop in New Jersey, you love animals, you don't date much and you love the outdoors." She said confidently.  
"How did I do?"  
"Very well, as a matter of fact, but I know nothing about you. Tell me a bit about yourself."  
"Well, I've never been married, by choice. I have no children. I am from California and I, likeyou, don't date much, by choice. I also love the outdoors. Oh, and I am an insomniac."

Jim sat back in his chair and gazed at her as he absorbed this new information. Here, before him, sat possibly the most beautiful woman in the world. He was in awe of her, and her beauty that  
he could see was not only on the outside. He watched her as she appeared to be thinking.

"When would we be leaving?" she asked  
"Tomorrow morning at sun up, do you have your own equipment?" he asked  
"Everything but the tent, I don't usually use one. I have really good luck with weather when it comes to camping, its never rained when I've gone out."  
"I can pick you up here if you like."  
"I think it would be easier to get me at my place, here's the address." She said as she wrote on a scrap of paper and handed it to him.  
"Sun up, then." She said as she rose and left his office.

He looked at the piece of paper for a while before another knock came to his door. Grissom entered and sat in the chair that was occupied by Sara a few minutes earlier.

"I see you met the new hire." He said  
"Yeah, she's knock out. She offered to accompany me on my trip this week." He said, smiling  
"Really, you two just met."

"She apparently did a background check on me, and probably everyone else in the lab. She said I am non-threatening, so she agreed to go with me."  
"Well, let me tell you a bit about her." Grissom said.  
"She well trained in the arts of weaponless combat. She hardly ever sleeps and she can, no doubt,hold her own. That's probably why she thinks of you as non- threatening. She could probably  
kick your ass."

"Well, let's hope it never comes to that." Jim said

Grissom rose and as he was leaving Brass's office he wished him good luck on their little trip.

It was 5:30 in the morning when Jim pulled up in front of Sara's apartment and walked the stonepath to her door. He knocked and waited for her to answer the door. He knocked again and this  
time he heard a voice on the other side of the door. The door opened and Jim saw before him, Sara in a pair of boxers and a tank top. She let him in as she walked back to the bedroom. He  
found himself staring at the ill prepared Sara in her shorts and shirt that left nothing to theimagination. His mind was now in the gutter. His mind was further in the gutter when she  
emerged from her bedroom in a pair of jean cut-offs and the same tank top. She sat on her couchand laced up her hikers and Jim saw that she had already packed her pack.

"I'll take this stuff out to the truck, ok?"  
"Ok, just let me tie these up and we can go." She said

When they left, it was 5:45 am. Jim had severely underestimated her, he thought it would takeforever for her to get ready, but it only took fifteen minutes. He was surprised.

They arrived at the site around 10:30am and began their hike to the creek that Jim haddesignated as their destination. Sara was keeping up very well for a woman with a 50lb pack on  
her back. She was carrying the food, water, fire starter and cook ware. He was carrying thetent, bags and mats. He had offered her the lighter pack, but she refused. He was impressed.  
When they reached the site, they removed their packs and Sara took off her hikers and shorts.She climbed on top of a rock by the creek and dove in, resurfacing towards the middle of the  
pool of water. She beckoned for him to come in and watched as he united his hikers and tookoff his shirt and waded in. He had a very nice upper body, almost like he worked out or  
something. He slowly made his way into the deep end of the pool. When the water his netherregions, he froze, the water was cold to the new touch. Sara saw this and swam over to him and  
took his hand. She grabbed it tight and pulled him in after her. She playfully splashed himand swam around him in circles. He stood till as she swam up behind him and placed her hands on  
his shoulders and gave him a little rub. She could feel the knots in his neck muscles andrubbed them out. When she finished, she simply waded out and fished in her pack for a towel,  
wrapping it around her waist. Jim stayed in the water for fear of her seeing his obviousarousal from the massage he had just received.

A few minutes passed when he managed his way out of the water and Sara handed him a towel to dryoff. He could not take his eyes off her. She was still wearing the towel and he could see  
through her wet tank top. She did not seem to care about that fact as she began to set up camp.She pitched the tent in a few minutes and tossed the bags and mats inside. As Jim watched, shetromped into the woods in search of fire wood.

She emerged from the woods a while later with a heaping armful of firewood. Jim had finishedsetting up camp as Sara plopped down the wood and he made a fire. As afternoon wore on into  
sunset, they sat around the fire and got better acquainted. He told her of his love for icehockey and his life back in New Jersey. She told him about growing up in a hippie commune in  
California and how she came to be in Las Vegas.

They ate their rations for dinner and Sara pulled a bottle of whiskey out of her pack. As Jimsaw her do this, he smiled. They drank from the bottle and when the alcohol had sufficiently  
gone to their heads, they turned in for the evening. Jim slipped out of his shorts and crawledinto his sleeping bag. Sara wore a pair of sweat pants cut-offs and a black tank top as she  
wiggled into her bag. They lay awake for a while, just talking. Jim asked her why she did notdate and she replied by stating that most men she comes in contact with are too immature and  
only have one thing on their minds. He laughed and she asked him why he did not date. Heexplained that his job did not allow for much of a personal life. She rolled over to face himand smiled at him.

As she looked at him she thought to herself that this man was not like the others she hadencountered, there was more to him than just the typical male behavior. When she told him this  
he blushed. She saw him turn red and leaned closer to him and placed a kiss on his forehead.

"You're a sweet guy, Jim. The women of Vegas have no idea what they are missing out on."  
"From your lips to God's truth." He said

She took one of his hands and turned it palm side up and began to examine it.

"You have a very strong life line, and your heart line is also very strong." She said as shelightly ran her index finger tip across his palm.

She looked into his eyes and studied them.

"Your eyes tell me that you have an enormous capacity for love and compassion. I also see greatsincerity, which all combined, are rare in men that I have met. You're a gem, Jim."

As she continued to stroke his hand he closed his eyes and fell fast asleep. Images of Saradanced throughout his mind as he slept. He slept the whole night and when he woke the following  
morning, he noticed that Sara had her arm draped around his waist. He could feel her softbreathing on the back of his neck. He did not want to move, ever.  
()

Jim woke to the feeling of weight on the bed. He opened his eyes slightly to see Sara slideunder the covers and make herself comfortable. As she stilled, he slid up behind her and  
draped his arm around her waist. He kissed her softly on the back of her neck as she placedher hand on top of his and squeezed slightly.

"Good morning, Sara." He said lovingly  
"Good night, honey." She said with a smile he could feel.

TBC?


	2. CH 2

Jim fell back asleep after Sara had crawled in bed with him. He was just barely awake when shehad climbed in, all he could do was mutter a good morning, and within a few seconds he was backin dreamland.  
()

Jim was asleep as he felt Sara drape her arm around his waist. It barely woke him as he lookeddown to see her hand dangling loosely over his midsection. He reached down and placed his handon top of hers, resting gently. He lay awake, feeling her warm breath on the back of his neck.He wondered in his mind whether this was a conscious gesture on her part of if she had justdone it in her sleep. Considering their conversation last night, he did not know, all he knewwas that she felt so good on him.

After about an hour she began to stir and she snuggled closer to him. He could tell she was awake, her breathing patterns had changed. He felt a warm, moist feeling on the back of his neck now.She had kissed him. He rolled over onto his back and turned his head to look at her and shesmiled a big sleepy, gap toothed smile as she greeted him good morning. He responded in kind ashe noticed that she had not moved her hand. He stretched his left arm out and she placed herhead on his chest, drawing herself closer to him. His mind and body were alive with feelings andsensations he had not felt in quite sometime. She drew lazy circles with her fingertips on hischest with her right hand. He squirmed slightly from the light tickling touch. She smiled andreached her hand inside his bag and tickled his ribs as he squirmed more wildly. She looked athim.

"My research didn't tell me that you're ticklish." She said as she smiled  
"Well, that's a closely guarded secret."

She climbed out of her bag and straddled him, slipping his bag down to his waist. She looked intohis eyes as she proceeded to tickle him mercilessly. He was trapped. All he could do was writheunder her feather light touches. She continued her eye contact as she leaned forward and lightlybrushed her lips against his. It only took a second or two, but it was enough for him. The kisshad awakened him in more places than one. She felt this as she leaned forward again and placedher lips on his and ran her tongue against his teeth. He opened his mouth, only slightly, but itwas enough for her to slip her tongue into his mouth and taste him. The kiss was growing morepassionate and his arousal was growing more prominent. She sat up and looked deep into his lustfilled eyes. He had a look of confusion on his face now. She just looked at him and asked,

"You wanna?"  
"Do I have a choice?" he asked  
"You always have choices, the trick is to make the correct ones. That's how you get happy in life." She stated

He laid back and pondered her wisdom for a moment and answered her in a most disappointing way.

"We've only just met. I like to get to know a woman a little better before I make love to her."

Sara pouted and climbed off of him. She kneeled on her bag and looked at him. She leaned forwardand placed a kiss on his cheek and said,

"That was the correct choice, and it will make you happy later."

She crawled out of the tent and left Jim laying with only himself and his thoughts about what shehad just said. How was that the correct choice, and how would it make him happy later? Truth betold, he wanted her now, but he was a gentleman. He lifted his head to see her stoking the firefor morning coffee. He took his time getting out of his bag, he had to. He put on his shorts  
and crawled out of the tent and sat beside her on the log she was occupying. He tried to avoidthe inevitable conversation, but Sara being Sara, brought it up.

"Why didn't we go ahead this morning?" she asked seriously  
"I explained, I like to know a woman for more than 24hrs before I make love to her."  
"No, that's not it."  
"It isn't?"  
"No. The reason we didn't go ahead is that you are a true gentleman, which is rare. You also havemorals and values, which are also rare in men these days. It was a test I conducted."  
"A test? That was a test?" Jim asked, confused  
"Yes, it was. You passed, with flying colors, I might add." She said casually. "I wanted to seewhat type of man you really are."  
"So, what kind of man am I?"  
"You are a good man, a kind man, a generous man and a gentleman. You are the best sort of man,Jim."

Jim looked at Sara and laughed. She had been playing with him to see what he would do if he werein a position to take advantage of her. But the words of Grissom echoed in his ears, "She's welltrained in the art of weaponless combat, she could probably kick your ass." He was glad he hadnot tried to take the chance he had been offered. Truth be told, he was beginning to like Sara,he didn't want to screw it up. He would wait, patiently.

They sat and drank their coffee in silence as Sara thought about the test she had administeredthat morning. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew what Jim would do, after all he had  
made no effort to take advantage of her the previous evening, and if he were going to, itprobably would have happened then. Her suspicions had been confirmed. She felt that he was a  
good man, but she had to know for sure. While she was doing her research on the team, hisprofile stood out from the others. She had spent more time looking at his information than the  
information of the others. She felt that he was a good man. She had set her sights on himbefore even meeting him. She had found his profile quite interesting, there was a man, who by  
all accounts was intelligent, compassionate, sincere and honest, yet he was uninvolved withanyone. She felt she had to find out why, and this trip was proving an excellent way to get to  
know the man better. He had already passed one test, that left only one more, and she would haveher answers.

The day wore on and they decided to go for a little walk in the woods, after all, they had tocollect more wood for the evening's fire. It was around noon when they set out and about 4:pm  
when they returned. The sun was getting low in the sky and they prepared their evening meal overthe fire that Jim had created. He sat on the log, gazing into the flames dancing about. He was  
mesmerized.

As the sun went down behind the mountains, Jim went into the woods to relieve himself. This gaveSara the perfect opportunity to put her second test into place. She carefully watched as Jim  
walked away from camp and just as he was out of eye sight she stripped her clothes off and doveinto the nearby creek. She had left an unmistakable trail of clothing leading from the tent to  
the water, when he returned he would most certainly find them. She had been swimming around forabout half an hour when Jim returned to the camp. He noticed the trail of Sara's clothing, first  
her shorts, then her top and finally her undergarments. He picked up the clothing and folded itneatly and placed it on the log. He then went into her pack and pulled out a dry towel for her.He did not see her watching him; she was well hidden behind a rock on the other side of thebank.

Jim sat on the log and looked out towards the water. He saw nothing. Suddenly he heard hersplashing and saw her coming in his direction. She stopped mid-pool and looked at him, smiling  
a smile that indicated wicked thoughts.

"Care to join me, the water is wonderful." She offered  
"Sure, I guess I could use a nice swim." He said as he took off his shirt and boots.

He waded into the water and swam around for a bit, trying to keep his distance from Sara. He knewshe was naked, how could she not be? As Sara swam up to him, he took a few steps back, he didnot want to get too close to her in her naked state, somewhere in the back of his mind hethought that this might be another one of her tests; what he would do if she were naked and  
within reach of him. She noticed that as she got closer to him, he continued to back away, thiswas good. She finally gave up trying to entice him and waded slowly out of the water. Jim  
watched her naked form leave the pool and take the towel he had laid out for her. As shewrapped the towel around her waist and put her top on, she looked at him and simply said,"You  
pass."

Jim knew what this meant and did not feel the need to ask her to elaborate. She reached into hispack and pulled out a towel for him and as he waded his way back onto shore she approached himand draped the towel around his shoulders. He smiled as he dried himself off and hung the towelon a tree branch to dry. Sara crawled into the tent and when she emerged she was wearing a  
rather short pair of shorts. She sat down on the log and twisted the cap off of the bottle ofwhiskey from the previous evening. She took a tug off of it and handed it to Jim as he satbeside her. He looked at her and sighed deeply.

"So, I passed, huh?" he asked  
"Yup." She said simply  
"So, what do I win?"

She did not answer as he handed the bottle back to her. She just looked at him and grinned. Hewas trying his hardest to keep his mind out of the gutter as she leaned towards him and planted  
a kiss on his lips. He said nothing as he looked at her. She just took another tug from thebottle and settled it into the sand at their feet. They talked some more about their respective  
backgrounds and when the hour marker on Jim's watch alerted him that it was 10:pm, he took onelast pull off the bottle and went to relieve himself. When he returned Sara was already in thetent and he noticed the bare skin of her back peeking out of her sleeping bag. He took off hisshorts and slipped into his bag. He lay on his back and stretched out his left arm as Sarasnuggled up to him and rested her head on his chest. She could hear his heart beating, it wasbeating fast.

She tilted her head up to meet his lips and she pressed hers against his as their tonguesdueled. She could taste him and he her. She looked into his eyes as she unzipped the side of  
his bag and climbed in with him. She climbed on top of him and straddled his mid-section as sheleaned down to kiss him again. He placed his hands upon her thighs as she covered his face and  
neck with little kisses. She could feel his growing arousal beneath her and she reached downand slipped him inside of her. Gently, she rocked back and forth, establishing a rhythm. Jim  
reached up with his hands and drew her face to his. His hands on her cheeks, he kissed her likea man who had not seen his love in forever. He could feel her muscles contract around him and  
he brought his hands back down to her hips to guide her. With his guidance, she slowed her paceand he reached around her back with his right hand and rolled her over onto her back.

She was now looking up at him and she could see the emotion in his eyes. She cupped his face inher hands and brought his lips to meet hers in a crushing kiss that seemed to last forever. As  
he thrust himself into her she moaned and grabbed at the sleeping bag material. As he felt hermuscles contract again, he quickened his pace and spilled himself into her as she cried out hisname in climax. He gave a few more thrusts until he was totally spent, and collapsed on top ofher.

After a minute, he rolled off of her and laid his head on her chest. She wrapped her left armaround his shoulder and drew light, lazy circles on his back. He began to squirm and she  
substituted the tickles for an open handed back rubbing.

They lay awake for some time before each of them drifted into unconsciousness, lying in each others arms. To Jim, there was no place he would rather be than here, now.

TBC?


	3. CH 3

Jim woke the next morning to an empty tent. He craned his head around, looking for Sara, butdid not see her. He crawled out of the tent and saw that she had already taken care of the  
fire and that there was already coffee made. He looked around the camp and noticed her bootswere gone. He looked down at the dirt/sand mixture and saw a series of footprints in different  
positions. It looked as if she had done some stretching, judging by the footprints and thenshe had taken off running, again judging by the distance between footprints. He rarely realized  
how much he had learned from working with Grissom and his crew, the footprint bit, being justanother example.

Jim was sitting on the log when he heard what sounded like a herd of stampeding buffalo comingtoward him from behind. He quickly turned his head and saw Sara come running right toward him full steam. She stopped right in front of him and checked her watch. She was out of breath andher chest was heaving. She looked at him and spoke.

"1 hour and fifteen minutes." She said gasping for air  
"To get from here to where?" Jim asked  
"From here to the truck and back, at full speed." She responded

Jim rose from his seat and retrieved a water bottle from her pack and twisted the top off andhanded it to her. She drank like a person walking out of the desert. She set the bottle down  
and leaned forward, placing her hands on her knees and tried to catch her breath. Jim gentlyrubbed her back with the palm of his hand and she turned her head to him and smiled. Her smile  
made him melt, he was beginning to have serious feelings for her; he could feel it. This was afirst for him, he hardly knew her and he was falling in love with her. This would be difficult,  
he knew. What if she didn't have the same feelings for him, what then? He tried not to thinkof it as he continued to rub her back.

Sara regained her composure and thanked Jim with a firmly planted kiss on the cheek. He blushedas she looked at him, searching his face for any hint of feeling or emotion. He managed asmile in return as he sat on the log. She sat beside him and placed her hand on his knee. Helooked down and then up at her face. She took a breath and began to speak.

"Jim, I've been doing some thinking this morning."  
"Really, what about?" he asked, half knowing the answer  
"About us." She said simply  
"Is there an, us?" he asked, again, half knowing the answer  
"Would you like there to be?" she asked seriously

Her question had him floored. He didn't know what to say. He knew what he wanted to say, but thewords simply would not produce themselves. He stammered and managed a hearty,

"Its up to you." That wasn't what he wanted to say, but was all he could manage.

She looked at him and thought for a minute before he began speaking again, this time with moreassertiveness.

"Sara, you're new here and I would hate for you to tie yourself down to the first guy you met.I like you. I like you a lot, but I'm no prize. You're still young and have your entire lifeahead of you. I'm getting up there in age and wouldn't wish you be with someone you didn't wanta serious relationship with. That's the only way I date, seriously. Commitment, you know, I'm  
not afraid of it, I want it." He said followed by a very deep breath.

Sara sat still and digested Jim's speech. She pondered his words like they had come from Godhimself, not that she was comparing Jim to God, but the words obviously held so much meaningto him, she decided to seriously consider them. After a few minutes he looked at her, worried.Had he scared her with the "C" word? She turned to him and looked into his eyes.

"I have no problem with commitment, Jim." She said  
"That's why I don't date much; most men are not commitment oriented. They just want somethingcasual and something that would leave them an "out" when and if they need it."

Jim was stunned to hear such mature and serious words come from someone that could not be a dayover 27. If it were possible, he loved her more than he had a few minutes ago, before the startof their conversation. He looked at her and could see the sincerity in her eyes. How could hedeny her when he could see the sincerity in her eyes? He spoke.

"Well, since we're both looking for commitment and there does seem to be a certain amount ofspark between us, why don't we give it a shot and see where this takes us. I warn you, I give  
100 to a relationship, and I would expect no less from my partner. If that is something youcan handle, I am willing and able to consider you, but if it is too much for you, then, I am  
sorry, but I don't like having my heart trampled on."

Sara looked at Jim as if she were about to cry. Her eyes began to redden with the threat oftears. Jim saw this and offered no real apology, he stood by his words. She slid closer to him  
and wrapped her arms around him. He looked at her, surprised. She looked deep into his eyes,hisblue eyes, and as she saw the sincerity behind his words, she kissed him. She kissed him  
hard and passionately. He was shocked, to say the least. He had met a woman at work and within24hrs he had her camping, and 24hrs later he had a commitment from her. This was all happeningin record time, he thought to himself. This had to be some sort of record setting event.

Lunch time was approaching and they broke out the ration bars and washed them down with someGatorade he had brought. He figured after her run this morning, Sara would need some. Sara  
thought to herself that this must be the world's most considerate man. First the chairs, thenthe opting out of taking advantage of her and now the declaration of commitment. In her eyes hewas the perfect man, so what if he was older and not in peak physical condition, who was inthis day and age? She had found herself a man that was willing to commit and expected the samefrom her. She felt like the luckiest woman in the world. She was so elated that she could notcontain herself. She jumped up from the log and grabbed both Jim's hands and enveloped him inan embrace that the Gods on high from Mount Olympus could not break apart. They clung to eachother as if their lives depended on it.

Their embrace was however, broken by Jim's need to relieve himself. He tore himself away fromSara just long enough to trod into the woods, pee and come back. When he returned he found hersitting on a rock beside the creek with her feet dangling in the water. He sat beside her andwatched the water as he saw little fish gather cautiously around her feet and as she wiggledher toes they scurried away; this series of actions made Jim laugh. Sara looked at Jim andlaughed.

The sun was beginning to set in the sky and Jim walked over to the fire that had been dyingdown and added some wood to it. They both sat on the log and reveled in their decision of  
earlier. Jim felt like a truly lucky man and Sara knew she was right when she had read Jim'sprofile before coming to Vegas. Jim reached into his pack and pulled out the whiskey bottle  
from the two previous nights and took a pull from it. He handed it to Sara and she did thesame. After about an hour of talking and drinking she had become a bit loose lipped and let  
slip the fact that she had spent hours going over his profile before coming to Vegas. She alsolet slip that she had done more research on him, than on any other member of the team. She  
told him that when she saw his photo in his profile, she had fallen in love. Jim was slightlyclear headed as he heard her drunken confessions. He did not know whether to feel honored orscared. She had spent so much time learning about him and she had set her sights on him beforeeven coming to Vegas; he chalked this up to determination. She surely was a determined soul,to think that she had been interested in him even before meeting him.

When it came time to turn in for the evening, they both wobbled their way into the tent andcollapsed onto their bags, this had been a very busy day; emotionally they were both exhausted.  
Jim lay flat on his back and Sara snuggled up to him and rested her head on his chest andwithin minutes she was asleep. He lay awake, rubbing her back and running his fingers through  
her hair. As he soaked in her aura, he truly felt a lucky man. There was nowhere he wouldrather be than with her, now. He was in heaven.


	4. CH 4

Jim woke the following morning with Sara still in his arms. She had laid her hand to rest low onhis waist and just above the waistline of his shorts. He turned his head and looked at the  
sleeping beauty in his arms. He was still in shock from the previous evening's conversation. Heheard the words echo in his head.

"When I saw your photo in your profile, I fell in love."

The memory of these words made him smile. He had not had a real and true smile in quite sometime, it felt good. As he shifted positions to alleviate some of the ache in his back, Sarabegan to wake. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked up at Jim. He smiled down at her.He moved to sit up and as he did, he gently rested Sara's head on the folded towel he had been  
using as a pillow. She groaned and rolled over as Jim crawled out of the tent. He stoked thefire and put the coffee on. As he sat on the log, he laced up his boots, did a bit of stretching  
and decided to see if he could match Sara's time from the previous morning. He barreled off intothe woods and towards the lot.

Sara woke about half an hour later to an empty tent. She dressed and made her way out of the tentand to the coffee she could smell. As she poured herself a cup and sat on the log, she noticed  
footprints similar to those she had left the previous morning. She thought to herself that Jimmust be doing what she did that morning. In preparation for his return, she took a bottle of Gatorade and placed it in the cool water of the creek, so that when he returned, it would be cold. She also retrieved a fresh t-shirt from his pack and got his towel ready.

As she sipped her coffee, she could not help but think that she was a very lucky woman. Here, she had a man that was not afraid of commitment; to the contrary, he sought it out. She was looking not to be alone, like she had been in California. The words of her mother rang loudly in her ears, "If you haven't found someone by the time you're 30, you'll die an old maid."

Just as she pushed these thoughts out of her head, she heard what sounded like a pack of wild elephants careening down a hillside. She turned her head to see Jim coming towards her. She rose calmly from the log and walked to the water and pulled out the bottle of Gatorade. When he was upon her, she handed it to him and helped him remove his sweaty, sticky shirt. Somewhere along the way, he had managed to tear a portion of it; she would have to mend it when they returned to thecity later that day. She handed Jim a fresh shirt and he sat it and the Gatorade down on the logand stripped down to his boxers and jumped into the creek. The water felt wonderful on hisoverheated, sweaty body. It cooled him down quickly and he gingerly made his way back on shore.Sara handed him his towel and watched him as he dried himself off.

Sara was finding it increasingly difficult to keep her eyes to herself, she continuously foundherself looking, no, leering at Jim. She had gotten to know him quite well these past few days  
and she liked what she saw. She saw a kind and generous man that had morals and a certain amountof virtue, though not a Saint, in her eyes, he was damn close.

When Jim had sufficiently composed himself, they began to break down camp and headed back to thelot. When they reached the lot, Jim tossed both packs in the back of his car and they headedback to town. They stopped at the lab before going home. They wanted to announce their return incase either of them was needed by the lab. As they walked the halls of the lab they were met byGrissom.

"How was your trip?" he inquired  
"It was very educational." Replied Sara and Brass in unison

Grissom looked at both of them with an inquisitive look. They quickly turned and walked out ofthe lab and returned to Brass's truck. The ride to Sara's apartment was spent in relative  
silence, and as they entered the lot to her building. Suddenly, Jim felt an odd sense of loss.He had only known Sara for three days and already he was beginning to have feelings of  
withdrawal. As she exited the truck, Jim popped the gate and she retrieved her pack. She walkedover to the driver's side and asked Jim if he would like to come in for a hot shower and  
relaxation. He pondered the offer for a moment before turning the engine off and exiting thevehicle himself. He grabbed his pack from the trunk and carried it up the steps to herapartment.

When they entered the apartment, Sara showed Jim where the shower was and he fished through hispack for a clean set of clothing. He stood in the living room, looking around the place and Sarawalked up to him and offered him the first shower.

"You can have the first shower; that will give me some time to unpack." She said

She fetched him a towel and he stripped himself of his grimy clothing that smelled like acombination of dirt and camp fire. While Jim was in the shower, Sara announced her presence in  
the bathroom.

"I'm going to take your stuff and throw it in the laundry, along with mine. Is that ok?"  
"Sure, fine." He answered

Sara took the clothing and went to the laundry room section of her apartment; in all actually itwas just a washer/dryer combination that stood in a closet just off the kitchen. After runningthe wash, she sat on her couch and turned on the television. After about ten minutes she heardthe water stop, and walked to the bathroom. Jim was standing in front of the mirror beginningto shave, she stood behind him and stripped and entered the shower, herself. Jim could notbelieve the amount of freedom she felt in regards to her nudity, not that he was complaining.She showered while he shaved and he asked her why it was that she seemed to feel so comfortablebeing nude in front of him.

"Well, its not like you've never seen me naked before, and besides, it's the way we all came intothe world, it's a natural thing." She stated

"True, but most women make some sort of effort to conceal their nakedness." He said  
"Well, I'm not most women." she replied, simply  
"This is true." He said as he peeked his head in the shower to kiss her on the cheek.

She handed him the soap and asked if he would wash her back. He more than willingly obliged her.He lathered up his hands and rubbed them in circles across her back, shoulders and neck. She  
turned to face Jim, letting the shower spray wash the soap from her back. He stood, gazing ather naked beauty, his arousal growing noticeably. Sara took notice of this and as he saw the  
look her face, he blushed. She reached out her hand and gestured for a towel. Jim looked aroundand saw no other towel but the one he was wearing. He slipped it off and handed it to her. As  
she dried herself, Jim walked to the bedroom and began to get dressed. Sara, now dry, followedhim into the bedroom. He had just put on his boxers when she came up behind him and placed herhands on his shoulders. He startled under her unexpected touch and he laughed.

"Lay flat on the bed, on your stomach." She directed

He did as he was told and was rewarded by a massage. She began at his neck and worked her waydown to his shoulders and then to his entire back, cracking his vertebrae as she applied  
considerable pressure. He groaned as her hands traveled around back and upper arms, working outthe knots in his muscles as she went. When she had finished, she lay flat on her front, on top  
of Jim's back. He could feel her warm breath on him as she trailed his sides with the tips ofher fingers. He tried to wriggle out from under her, but much to no avail. He was trapped and  
at her mercy. After a few minutes of torture, she allowed him to roll over onto his back. Shelooked down at him and straddled him again. He looked up into her big brown eyes and cupped her  
face in his hands and drew her closer to him.

He planted a very well placed kiss on her lips and she reciprocated by un- hitching her towel.He looked up at her and smiled widely. He ran his hands up her sides and cupped one breast ineach hand, gently kneading the perfectly sized mounds of flesh. He ran his thumbs across hernipples and she moaned, ever so slightly. She leaned down to kiss him again and she could feelhis arousal growing beneath her.

"We have to do something about these troublesome shorts." She said as she removed his boxers.

She climbed on top of him again and slid him inside her. She could feel every inch of histhrobbing manhood. He filled her completely. She began to ride him as if he were some sort of  
wild horse. He placed his hands on her hips to steady her. As he felt her muscles contractaround him, he gripped at the bedclothes. She quickened her pace and as she was experiencing herclimax, he was having one of his own. They both called out each others names in a release ofsexual energy and satisfaction. They lay in each others arms for the remainder of the afternoon.  
After about an hour, they both drifted into unconsciousness. When they woke, it was to theshrill sound of Jim's cell phone. He reached for it and answered it.

"Brass, here." He answered  
"Hey, Its Grissom. Where are you?"  
"Napping. Why, what time is it?"  
"9:00pm. Do you know where Sara is. I called her cell, but she did not answer." Grissom said  
"I can find her, if you like." He offered  
"Yes, do that, and bring her in. There is some paperwork she needs to fill out before she startstomorrow." Grissom directed.

"I'll see if I can find her. We'll be in a little later." He said as he hung up his cell.

Sara turned to Jim and looked at him sleepily.

"Grissom needs you to come in tonight to fill out some paperwork before you start tomorrow."Jim said

Sara hopped out of bed and began to dress herself. Jim dressed as well and within a few minutesthey were out the door and in Jim's truck. They stopped for coffee on the way to the lab and  
when they parked the truck at the lab, they did not notice Catherine standing near the entrance.They were holding hands and just before emerging from the rows of parked cars, they stopped andgave each other a kiss. Catherine saw this and ran inside before she could be noticed. As Jimand Sara entered the lab, Catherine was already in the break room running at the mouth.

When Jim and Sara parted company at Grissom's office, Jim went on to the break room. As heentered he was met with looks of curiosity. He looked at Catherine, who tried to hide her face  
and guilty expression; she did not do a very good job of it. Warrick stood and congratulated Jim on a fine conquest. Nick walked to him and patted him on the back and made a joke about  
robbing the cradle. Jim turned bright red as the questions and comments continued. He enduredthis for about an hour before. Sara entered the break room and rescued Jim. She took him by thehand and they left the lab together. The team watched in stunned silence as Jim and Sara walkedout of the building, holding hands and left in Jim's truck.

Warrick turned to Nick and said,

"I'm glad he finally found someone. He was in some dire need of lovin'."  
"Well, it looks like he got some." Said Nick

TBC?


	5. CH 5

The team was still talking about Jim and Sara after they had left. Warrick was saying how happyhe was that Jim had finally found someone to spend time with. Nick was pointing out Jim's good  
points to Catherine, who was busy being jealous.

"Who is this girl, anyway?" she asked. "I mean, she shows up and within a matter of days shestarts dating Brass. What has she got that I haven't.?"

"Well, its obviously something good."Warrick pointed out.  
"Jim doesn't just go out with anybody; he's into the whole commitment thing, maybe she is too."

The team sat at the conference table as Grissom entered and handed out assignments. They knewthat Grissom and Brass had been friends for the longest time, so they decided to ask himquestions about Sara and Jim.

"All I know is that they went on a camping trip earlier in the week, and now it seems thatthey're an item." He stated

Jim and Sara did not go straight home that evening. Since he had scooped her up on her firstnight in Vegas, he decided to show her around a bit. They went to dinner at an Italianrestaurant and he filled her in as to what types of cases she could expect.

"We've got some real wierdo's and sicko's out here." He said  
"The crimes can't be all that different from the ones in California." She said  
"Not really, but we do get the occasional really crazy ones." Jim said

Dinner having been finished the twosome decided to walk the streets for a bit. They wound up at acarnival that was in town. Sara loved carnivals. She loved the rides and most of all she loved  
getting the biggest prizes. She knew the tricks to all of them, how they grease the plates atthe coin toss, how they add just a bit of water turbulence to make the duck heads bob up anddown so you can't get the ring around the neck, she knew it all. She was like a kid in a candystore.

Jim was impressed, to say the least, at her ability to beat all the games and get the really bigprizes. By the time they left, Jim had his arms full of stuffed animals. On their way home, Sara  
asked to stop by a church. Jim was curious, but asked no questions. They pulled up in front ofOur Lady of Perpetual Suffrage and Sara hopped out and asked Jim to do the same. They removedthe animals from the trunk of his truck and brought them inside and placed them in a toydonation box, just inside the church doors. Jim smiled at Sara as they drove to her place. Saralooked over to him and asked what he was grinning about.

"What are you grinning about?" she asked  
"Just the fact that you spent all that money, won all those prizes and just gave them all away."Jim said

"I gave them to children that can't afford toys of their own." Sara said  
"You have a very kind heart, you know?"  
"Yes, I do know. It took you this long to figure it out?"  
"No, I knew, but not to this extent."

They pulled up in front of Sara's building and she asked if he wanted to stay the night. Heturned off the ignition switch and exited the truck with her. They walked up the path leading  
to her apartment and as Sara reached in her pocket for the key, she felt Jim's arms wrap aroundher waist. She placed her unoccupied hand on top of his and continued fishing for the key. Shefinally managed to locate it, just in time, as Jim had already started unbuttoning her shirt.

The door opened with a thud against the wall. Sara turned on Jim and forced him against the backof the door, effectively closing it; slamming it was more like it. She ran her hands down the  
front of Jim's shirt and down to the crotch of his pants. She felt him in her hand and broughther hands back up to his shirt, where she tore the shirt open, buttons flying everywhere. She  
crushed her lips into his and took him by the wrists and placed his hands above his head. Shekissed him about the face and neck as he tried to free himself from her grasp which was ofconsiderable strength.

She released him, only to undress herself. She stood naked before Jim and as he soaked in herpure and natural form, he hastily unbuckled his belt and let his slacks drop to the floor. He  
kicked off his shoes as Sara took him by the hand and lead him to her room. She opened the doorand Jim followed her in. He sat on the bed as she walked toward him, kneeling on the bed and  
then crawling up his body. She came to rest on his stomach and leaned forward to kiss him. Heplaced both his hands on her face and drew her into a deeply passionate kiss. His tongue sought  
entry into her mouth and she granted it. Their oral muscles dueled, tasting each other. Heloved the way she tasted, and truth be told, she loved the way he tasted.

She could feel him growing beneath her and she rose slightly so as to be able to slip him insideher. She glided back and forth, riding him. He grabbed wildly at the bed clothes andaccidentally knocked over the lamp on the night table. Sara seemed unconcerned. She rode himlike there was no tomorrow. He could feel her tighten around him and as she cried out in herclimax, he grunted with his. They both were exhausted. Sara rolled off of Jim and lay on her  
side as he scooted up behind her. He draped his arm around her waist and they both fell fastasleep.

(END OF DREAM SEQUENCE)

Jim awoke the following morning with his arm still draped around Sara's waist. He loved waking upto her. He loved her smell, the way she walked, the way she talked, the way she handled herself.  
He knew a side of her that no one else at the lab did. He was privy to the private Sara; theSara that she shared only with him. As he watched her sleep for a few minutes he realized thathe really and truly did love her. Even though it had been only about six months since they metand started dating, these were the happiest six months of Jim's life, and he owed it all to her.In his mind he wandered over thoughts he had been having lately about asking her to marry him.He didn't think she would accept, given their short courtship. But he thought long and hardabout it and made his decision. He slipped out of bed, carefully so she would not notice andwalked to his top dresser drawer. He opened it up and removed a small jeweler's box. He openedit and looked at the ring within. It was laced with Amethyst and Sapphire and had a good sized  
Emerald in the center. He had seen her look at it a few weeks ago and the following day hereturned to the store and purchased it. Now he was holding it in his hand.

Suddenly, he heard a sound coming from the bed. He walked over to Sara's side and kneeled nextto her. As she opened her eyes, she smiled at him. He looked deep into her eyes and summoned up  
the courage to ask her.

"Sara, I would like you to do something for me." He said lovingly  
"Sure, anything, you know that. What would you like?" she asked  
"For you to be my wife." He said as he presented her with the ring

She shot up in bed and looked at him. She was silent, this could potentially be bad. She took thering from Jim and looked at it.

"It's the one I saw last week." She said, surprised  
"Yeah, I noticed. So, will you?" he prodded

Sara took the ring from the box and placed it on her finger. She looked down at it and tearsbegan to run down her face. Jim looked at her and wiped the tears away with his strong, yetgentle hands. She looked up at him and just stared.

"I take it this is a yes?" he asked  
"Yes, yes. I will, Jim." She said through tears. "I will make you so happy, you won't know whatto do with me."  
"Oh, I can already think of a couple of things I would like to do with you." He said hekissed her forehead.

The End?


	6. CH 6

Sara and Jim sat in bed, his arms around her. She was gazing down at the ringon her finger. As Sara moved her hand to the side, the sun shone through thewindow and cast its rays on the gemstones, making them glimmer and shine.Jim was beaming with joy, his face alight with the best sort of happiness;the sort that comes from knowing that you are loved.

Sara looked up at Jim and grinned from ear to ear.

"This is so beautiful" she said  
"Beautiful things for a beautiful woman" he replied, grinning

Sara lay back in bed, and turned to Jim. She rested her head on his broadchest and slowly drifted back to sleep. As she dozed her mind was aflutterwith visions of her and Jim; happy and in love. She glowed.

Sara woke that evening to find that Jim was gone. She looked around and hergaze settled on a piece of paper on her bedside table. She reached over andpicked it up, unfolding it.

"Sara, I had to go in early. I didn't want to wake you. See you later. Jim."

Sara climbed out of bed and jumped in the shower. When she emerged from thebathroom she heard the phone ring. She ran into the living room and pickedit up.

"Sara Brass." she said, realizing only after she spoke, the words she uttered  
"Sara?"  
"Grissom?" she asked, mentally kicking herself  
"What did you say?" he asked, confused  
"Never mind. What do you need?" she asked, changing the subject  
"Oh, um...I need you to come in a little early." he replied  
"What's the problem?" she inquired  
"We have a break in a case. I need you at the precinct." he explained  
"Ok. I'll be in in a bit." she said, hanging up the phone before Grissomcould utter another word

Sara drove quickly to the precinct and parked next to Jim's car. As sheentered through the sliding doors Jim greeted her. He had a rather broadgrin on his face and a certain spring in his step.

"What brings you here?" he asked sweetly  
"Grissom called me in early. He said there was a break in a case."  
she explained  
"That's news to me." Jim said, curiously  
"Well, if there's no casework, then why does he want me here?" Sara askedherself, aloud

Jim and Sara walked to his office and closed the door behind them. Jimpicked up his desk phone and handed it to Sara. She was a bit confused asto why Grissom would summon her to the precinct if there was no reallyvalid reason for her presence. Jim dialed Grissom's cell phone and satbehind his desk.

"When he answers, tell him you're here and ask where he is." Jim directed

The phone rang.

"Grissom."  
"Grissom, this is Sara. Where are you?" she asked, trying not to sound tooobvious  
"I'm on my way."  
"Well, there's no one in the interrogation room. Are you sure about the case?"  
"I'll be there in a minute." he said, curtly  
"Ok. I'll be here."

Sara hung up the phone and sat across from Jim. She slouched back in herchair and sighed.

"Grissom wouldn't go into any details. He just said he was on his way."Saraexplained.  
"Well, when he gets here, he'll find you in here." Jim said in a very  
suspicious tone

Jim and Sara sat in silence for the better part of half an hour. Finally,Grissom showed up. He was unable to find Sara in the waiting room, so hecalled her on her cell.

"Sidle."  
"This is Grissom. Where are you?" he asked  
"I'm with Jim, in his office." she replied

Grissom closed his cell phone and headed towards Jim's office. He knocked onthe door and heard Jim say "enter". He slowly opened the door and saw Sarasitting across from Jim. He took the seat next to her and turned to look ather. As he turned, Sara brushed a stray hair from her face with her lefthand. Grissom's eyes were drawn to the ring that was on her finger. Hetried his best not to let on that he had seen it, but his facial expressiondid him in. He took a deep breath and blinked his eyes several times.

"So, what's this about a break in a case?" Sara asked, half knowing

Grissom was momentarily speechless. He tried to speak, but words eluded him.Finally, he was able to summon up the stomach to ask the obvious.

"So, you and Jim decided to make it official, I see." Grissom commented  
"That's right." Sara said, flatly  
"When is the happy occasion?"  
"We haven't set a date yet." Jim replied

Grissom rose and walked towards the door. As he opened it, he turned hishead.

"Sara, could I speak with you in private?"

Sara looked at Jim and he nodded. She stood up and followed Grissom out ofJim's office, down the hall and out of the building. As she stepped outside,Grissom whipped around and stood on the verge of invading her personalspace. He was red in the face and his arms were flailing about.

"What are you playing at?" he asked in a harsh tone  
"I'm sorry. I don't follow you." she replied  
"You and Jim are getting married?"  
"Yes. He asked me, I love him, so I said yes." Sara said in even tones

Grissom began to pace, oblivious to the fact that Jim was watching him fromthe other side of the doors. Jim stood in shadows while he listened toGrissom rant and rave.

"You don't really love him, do you?"  
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. What is it to you?" she snapped  
"Its just a bit sudden, don't you think?"  
"No, not at all. Look, Grissom, life is short and I'm not getting any  
younger. I was very lucky to find a man that I love and that loves me inreturn. When you find love at my age, you best jump on it." she explained

Jim was growing increasingly uncomfortable with Grissom's current line ofquestioning. However, for the sake of Grissom, he remained hidden. He wouldconfront him later.

"Can you honestly tell me that you are in love with him?" Grissom prodded  
"Yes, Gil. I am honestly and truly in love with Jim. Why all the questions?"she asked in raised tones

Grissom said nothing. He continued to pace back and forth in a nervous rage.Finally when Sara excused herself from his company, he turned to her andplaced his hands on her shoulders, holding her in front of him. Saraattempted to free herself, but was unsuccessful.

"Grissom, let me go." she demanded

Grissom said nothing. As Sara struggled, he drew her to him and planted akiss on her lips. She resisted and managed to push him away from her. Jimwas stunned at what he saw, but kept his cool. He kept his place behind arather large fern and watched the events unfold.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Sara shouted  
"Tell me that this meant nothing to you. Say those words and I'll leave yoube." Grissom demanded

"Its too little too late, Grissom. You think you can just kiss me and I'lltake back the promise that I made to Jim. I learned to live without yourlove in the last few years. I learned to love another. I suggest you do thesame." Sara fired back at him

Grissom stood stock still, riveted in place. All he could do was watch asSara turned from him and walked back inside and down the hall to Jim'soffice.

Sara walked right past Jim, not seeing him behind his fern. She flung hisoffice door open and plopped down behind his desk. She had her head in herhands when the office door opened. She snapped her head up and lookeddirectly into Jim's eyes. He approached her and sat in the chair oppositehis desk. Jim rubbed his face with an open hand and sighed.

"What's the matter, honey?" he asked in low tones

Sara sat up and took a deep breath.

"Well, when Grissom and I were outside, he kissed me. Out of nowhere, hekissed me." Sara said, ashamed

Jim knew what had happened; he had seen it all, but he wanted to hear itfrom her. He sat silent for a moment, then replied.

"Well, how does that make you feel?"  
"Honestly, I feel violated. Dirty." Sara replied  
"Do you want me to set him straight? Because I will, if you want me to."Jim offered  
"I don't know what to do. I mean, he's my boss and I don't want to doanything that will make him retaliate in any sort of way. I don't want tobe transferred to days." Sara explained

Jim sat and stared at her for a moment. He had never seen her like thisbefore. She seriously looked scared; Sara never got scared. As Jim sat andcontemplated his next course of action Sara stood up and walked out of hisoffice and out the front doors to her truck. Jim gave chase and caught upto her just as she was climbing into her truck. He took her by the elbowand stopped her. He could see the conflict within her and felt for her.

"You going home?" he asked  
"Yeah. I think I'll call in sick tonight. I don't feel like dealing with himor his bullshit tonight. I've got to figure out what I'm going to do abouthim." she explained  
"Ok. Give me a call if you need anything."  
"I will." Sara said as she climbed into her truck.

As she pulled out of her spot, she rolled the window down and leaned out togive Jim a kiss. The kiss was brief, but reassured Jim as to where heraffections lie. She shifted into drive and turned to Jim.

"I love you." she said, sweetly  
"I love you more." he replied as she drove off and out of his sight.

Jim walked inside and found Grissom. He was in the men's lavatory. Jimstood, leaning on one of the sinks and waited for Grissom to emerge. Hewould give the wretch a piece of his mind.

TBC?


	7. CH 7

Jim stood, waiting for Grissom to crawl out from his stall. As he bided his time, he mulled overthe words he wanted to use when he confronted the man. He knew that he had a thing for Sara,  
but never in a million years, did he think that Gil would ever do something like this.Apparently, Jim had been labouring under the delusion that their friendship was important toGil. Jim knew that he took their friendship seriously and this was why Grissom's actions hadhim upset. Out of courtesy and respect, Jim would never approach one of Gil's lady friends andbus her. "Maybe I have more class than he does" Jim thought to himself.

Grissom could hear breathing by the sinks and by the shoes he saw from under his stall door,it was Jim that was standing there. There could be only one reason that Jim would be waiting  
for him and the thought of a confrontation scared him more than a bit. After a few minutes ofinactivity, Grissom saw the feet shuffle and heard Jim speak.

"Grissom, I know you're not constipated, so get out here."

Slowly, the door opened and Grissom emerged, head hung low, obviously ashamed of his actions.He steered clear of Jim as he took a sink at the far end of the row. Avoiding eye contact, Gil  
washed his hands and when he reached for a paper towel, Jim snatched a couple up and handedthem to him. Confused, Gil looked up at Jim and his face turned red. Quickly, his mind workedovertime, trying to figure out what he should say to his best friend.

"Jim, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me." Gil said, stammering  
"You're not sorry. You asked to see her in private, that indicates premeditation." Jim stated

Busted, Grissom thought to himself. He should have known better than to try and slide his wayout of this. Looking like a child that had just been caught looking at porno mags, he stood  
still, awaiting the tongue lashing.

"Gil, out of respect for our friendship, I'm not gonna lay you out, but I swear, if you evertry anything like that again, I'll give you a nice little reminder as to why you should keepyour hands to yourself. Sara and I are happy and I'll be damned if I'm going to let youinterfere with that." Jim said in calm tones

Without waiting for Grissom's response, Jim turned and walked out of the lavatory and down thehall to his office. Gil stood and went over Jim's words, as he tossed the paper towels in the  
garbage can and walked towards the hallway. He stopped in the doorway and, looking both waysto make sure the coast was clear, he made a bee-line for his office.

The stall door of the end commode opened and Greg stepped out, not believing what he heard.Grissom has bussed Sara and Jim was none too pleased. This tasty morsel of gossip was worth  
gold, he thought to himself as he quickly washed his hands and went in search of Catherine,the Queen of Inter-Office Gossip.

Sitting in the break room, Catherine, Warrick and Nick sat, each engrossed by their ownactivities. Catherine was reading an article about Halloween costumes while Nick and Warrick  
were playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2.

Hauling ass as though his life depended on it, Greg skidded into the break room and nearlyknocked over Doc Robbins. Stopping and helping the man steady himself, Greg apologizedprofusely.

"I'm sorry, Doc. I should have been walking briskly instead of running."  
"That's ok, Greg. Just be more careful next time." Robbins chided

Seeing Catherine, now looking up at him, Greg rushed to her side and dropped into the seat nextto her. Taking her magazine from her and laying it flat on the table, Greg turned to the older  
woman and whispered into her ear. Alert from the run in with Robbins, Nick and Warrick pickedup on the secretive nature of Greg's conversation and made their way over to the table and sat  
across from Catherine and Greg. Realizing that they weren't going to budge, Greg motioned forthem to lean in. His face was alight as he spilled the details of what he heard.

"I was in the can, minding my own business, when I heard an exchange between Brass and Grissom."he stated

"What happened?" asked Nick  
"Apparently, Grissom kissed Sara. Brass was really pissed. I know this because he was very calmand never raised his voice. And for Brass, I know that's a bad sign." Greg continued.

"What did Grissom have to say for himself?" Catherine asked  
"He said he didn't mean to do it, but Brass called his bluff, saying that since Grissom hadasked to speak with Sara in private, that it was pre-meditated."

"So, what did Brass say?" Warrick asked  
"Brass said that if Grissom ever tried anything like that again, that he would lay him out."Greg said, looking over his shoulder

The four of them sat in silence, digesting what had been said. Brass was definitely not one tobe trifled with and to be on his bad side was truly a bad thing, this, they all knew.

Until the beginning of shift, Grissom was hiding out in his office and whenever someone walkedpast his door, he snapped his head up and his eyes got wide. He could not help but think that  
the encounter between he and Jim was not over. Gil was scared, and he didn't scare easily, sothis was relatively new for him.

Looking at his laptop and reading through his e-mails, his gaze was trained to one inparticular; from Sara. He took a deep breath and clicked the message, opening it. As he stared  
at the monitor, his brain registered what she had written.

"Grissom, I don't know what you were thinking this afternoon, but your behaviour was completelyand totally out of line. I don't appreciate it at all, not one bit. I'll do you a favour and  
not file a sexual harassment complaint. Let this be a reminder to you, I am not for you, I amfor Jim, so, hands off."

Evidently and understandably, Sara was livid, and for this, Grissom was truly regretful. He hadnever had the sudden, overwhelming feeling to kiss anyone before, why should Sara be anydifferent? He contemplated this last thought for a while when he heard a knock at his door.The shades were drawn on both the windows and the door, so he could not see who was calling,but in a split second of rational fear, he jumped out of his seat and cowered under his desk.Again, the caller knocked, and this time, they spoke.

"Gil, this is Catherine." she said, opening the door slowly

From under his desk, Grissom looked out and saw Catherine's shoes. He went to get up, but onlysucceeded in banging his head on the underside of his desk drawer. Catherine heard this and  
walked around the back of his desk, pulling the chair out. Bending over and looking down atGrissom, she had to stifle her laughter, she only succeeded in contorting her face a bit.  
Looking at Grissom, Catherine could see the sweat beads on his brow and hear his rapidbreathing.

"Gil, get out from under there. You're a grown man, for Christ's sake, act like one."she ordered

Gil crawled out from under his desk and stood in front of Catherine. He was still breathingheavily and Catherine placed her hand on his chest.

"God, Gil, slow down. Slow deep breaths."

Grissom stood and slowly counted to ten, taking slow and even breaths in time. After a fewmoments, he checked his pulse.

"120, from 75. I swear, Catherine, if you wanted to kill me, all you'd have needed to do wasbang a bit harder." he said

Catherine tried to stop from laughing, but could not. Finally, seeing her obvious pleasure athis current discomfort, Grissom eyed her cautiously. The look on her face said it all; she knew  
the dirt. Trying to summon up all his courage, Grissom sat back down in his chair and asked the411. Knowing full well that she was nailed, Catherine decided she would spare the ass of Greg  
and not disclose his culpability.

"A little birdie told me, and I'll leave it at that." she said  
"Only one person is faster than you at distributing office gossip, Catherine, and we bothknow who that is, don't we?" Grissom asked, knowingly

Catherine said nothing to either confirm or deny Grissom's deduction, but just stood stoic andglared at him. Catherine knew that Grissom was in no mood to deal with gossip, so she quicklyexcused herself and headed for Greg's lab.

His butt bouncing happily atop his stool, Greg listened to his latest investment from the CDepot;The Best of Blue Oyster Cult, Joan Crawford. Singing "Joan Crawford has risen from the dead"he was oblivious to the presence of Catherine at his door. Seeing the lab tech in obviousecstasy, Catherine struggled inwardly about whether or not she should disrupt him, but the  
thought of Grissom pummeling the lively DNA jockey decided for her. Cautiously, she approachedhim from behind and placed a hand on his shoulder at the same time she lowered her tone and  
tried to mimic Grissom's voice.

"Gregory." she said

Scared out of his mind, Greg blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"I swear, it wasn't me." he shouted as he leapt off his stool and hit the floor

Laughing her ass off, literally, Catherine nearly lost control of her bladder as she took in thetruly frightened sight of her colleague's face. Greg's usual pasty colour had been replaced by  
a shade of bright red and his eyes were shifting from side to side as if he were looking forsomeone or something. Helping him up, Catherine whispered.

"Grissom knows it was you. I didn't tell him a thing, but he knows it was you, all the same."she stated  
"I never thought I'd die at the age of 28 by the hands of an angry Entomologist." he managed

Catherine realized the truth in Greg's comment and consoled him.

"Hey, if we both play dumb, he has nothing on either of us, got it?" she asked, winking  
"Gotcha, Cath." he replied

A week had passed and Grissom was still avoiding Brass as if his life depended on it, which, asfar as he was concerned, it did. Sara was not overtly trying to steer clear of Gil, it just  
happened that she hadn't seen him much lately. Grissom had approached Greg about the gossipand the lab tech took Catherine's advice about playing dumb. Both times Gil had questioned him,Greg feigned ignorance. Finally, Grissom tired of this and left the young man alone.

At home, Jim and Sara were happy as they usually were. They had the same days off and they spentthe time mulling over the details of not only the lab's annual Halloween party, which was thenext day, but their wedding ceremony. Both Jim and Sara agreed that it should be a smallservice, and Jim suggested it be held at his place, as his yard was more than large enough.

"It'll be fine, honey. I promise. Besides, how many brides get to go from getting married, tofive minutes later, playing chicken in the pool?" he asked

"Only you would put it that way, Jim." she replied "So, what are you going as tomorrow?"

Rubbing his cheek with an open hand, Jim paused before telling her what his costume was going tobe.

"I'm going as a pig, if you must know." he stated proudly "What are you going as?"

Saying nothing, Sara got up and walked to the kitchen, avoiding Jim's question. Noticing herstall tactic, Jim stood and followed her. Leaning on the breakfast bar, he leaned forward and  
asked again. Sara heard him very well, but did not reply. Finally, Jim rounded the bar andcornered her between the fridge and the sink. Her back to the counter and Jim's hands on either  
side or her waist, Sara gazed at him. Lost in her eyes, Jim leaned in and whispered into herear.

"Tell me what you're going as or I'll nibble." he said rather seductively  
"No, you're not gonna nibble me, Jim. You know I'm sensitive there." she whined

Leaning in even further, Jim took Sara's earlobe between his lips and gently nibbled on it.Sara squirmed as Jim continued to suck and pull on her lobe. After a few moments of this  
torture, Sara relented, and she stopped trying to fend Jim off. Sensing this, Jim took onelast suck of her ear and pulled back, grinning.

"What are you grinning at?" Sara asked, slightly annoyed

Jim said nothing, but just took something from his mouth. Handing it to Sara, he smiled.Sara looked in the palm of her hand and saw her earring; Jim had sucked it off. Now, Sara  
knew that Jim was talented in the arts of seduction, but she'd never seen anyone remove anearring from someone's ear, backing and all, and hold it in their mouth and re-attach the  
backing. Grinning herself, Sara winked at Jim.

"I knew you were talented, but I've never seen anyone do that before." she commented  
"Well, I've made that my life's mission; to keep you on your toes, when you're not on your back,that is." he replied

Sara grinned and in an effort to avoid disclosing her Halloween costume, she took Jim's handin hers and lead him towards the bedroom. In her mind, Sara knew that some afternoon sex would  
definitely take his mind off of her Halloween costume. As they passed through the doorway,Sara turned to Jim and very seductively wiggled out of her t-shirt. Jim's eyes got wide and by  
the sudden growth in the crotch of his jeans, he had forgotten all about Sara's costume.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Jim watched as Sara danced her dance of love. Moving slowly,she shimmied out of her jeans and let them fall to the floor at her feet. His mouth hanging  
open from the sight, Jim began to drool as Sara slid her thong down past her knees and to thefloor to join her jeans. Totally naked, she approached Jim and as she moved closer to him, he  
leaned back on the bed until he was flat on his back and Sara was straddling his midsection.If his erection was any indication, he was very excited. His eyes twinkled and Sara could see  
the ecstasy shimmering back at him and he looked up into her big brown eyes.

Carefully, Sara unbuttoned the fly of his jeans and removed them, tossing them to the floorwith the rest of their clothing. It was hard, to say the least, to miss the tenting action  
in his boxer shorts. Smiling wide, Sara leaned forward, and taking the waistband of his shortsin her fingers, she flung them off of him. Wanting to waste no time, Jim wriggled out of his  
t-shirt and threw it to the floor. Perched atop Jim's growing erection, Sara gazed down athim and placed a kiss on his chest above his heart.

"My God, you're so beautiful. Do you know that?" he asked  
"Only when you tell me ten times a day." she replied, smirking  
"Well, its true. You've got to be the most beautiful naked woman I've ever seen." he stated  
"And you, Jim, have got to be the best lover I've ever had." Sara commented  
"Well, I'm only as good as I am when I'm with you." he said, smiling "Its true, you know."  
"What's true?"  
"That you can lose yourself, everything, all boundaries, all time. That two bodies can become so mixed up that you don't who's who or what's what, and just when the sweet confusion is so  
intense you think you're going to die, you kind of do; leaving you alone in your separate body,but the one you love is still there. That's the miracle; you can go to heaven and come back  
alive, and go back anytime you want, with the one you love." Jim explained rather poetically

Caught by the intensity if Jim's words and the meaning behind them, Sara's eyes welled withtears and she began to weep uncontrollably. Looking up from the flat of his back, Jim wonderedwhat he had said to elicit this response from her. Shifting so that he was sitting up againand Sara was held by his warm embrace, he kissed the top of her head and asked her the matter.

"What's wrong, honey? Was it something I said?"  
"Oh, Jim, that's the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. You really do love me,don't you?" she asked

"Of course I do. Why do you ask a question you already know the answer to?" he wondered aloud  
" I've just never felt about someone the way I feel about you and now, to hear you say somethingso sweet and wonderful, I just wonder where you've been all my life." she replied

"I've been here all along. I think you've know that. From the first moment I saw you, I knewthat you were very special and that I wanted to share my life with you."

At hearing this, Sara wept more and when she attempted to hide her tears, Jim took her facein his hands and gazed into her eyes. The emotion was evident and he wondered what Gods must  
have been smiling down on him the day he met her. As Sara's tears subsided, Jim leaned backon the bed and, lying flat, he guided Sara's head to lay on his chest. His left arm draped  
around her shoulder, he closed his eyes and they drifted to sleep. Their afternoon romp inthe sheets had turned into a siesta, instead, but Jim did not mind, as long as Sara wasthere with him, he would gladly go anywhere.

Noon, the following day and the team members were preparing for the early evening's festivities.The celebration would occur at 16:00hrs and last until 19:00hrs; just enough time for the nightshift to change from their costumes into their street clothes.

Greg and Nick had shown up early to set up the party food and liquid refreshment. Grissom hadnot been heard from in regards to whether or not he was going to attend, but everyone assumed  
that he would.

15:30hrs and people were beginning to show up, Nick and Warrick were the first to don theircostumes as Count Dracula and Muhammad Ali, respectively. Catherine showed up as the girlfrom "Resident Evil", red dress, thigh holster and all. Greg came as a robot, Jim showedup as a pig and Sara arrived shortly thereafter dressed as Dorothy from "The Wizard of Oz",  
blue dress, picnic basket, ruby slippers and all. Together, Jim and Sara made a veryinteresting couple, as did Warrick and Catherine. When the clock struck 16:00hrs, Grissom  
wandered through the doors of the break room dressed as Ludwig Van Beethoven. A good timewas to be had by all and Grissom had had his share of the "punch". He sat in a corner of thelounge and watched as his colleagues partied and enjoyed themselves. Seeing Sara and Jimtogether, Gil's blood began to boil and before he knew what was going on, he had stood up  
and approached Jim and Sara from behind. Seeing him approach, Sara alerted Jim to Gil'spresence. Turning just in time, Jim watched as Grissom came up to them. Suspicious as to Gil's  
intent, Jim just stood as Gil babbled.

"You two are so cute together; the pig and the Miss Priss." he said through slurred speech  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jim asked  
"Just as I said, the pig and the priss." Grissom repeated  
"For your information, I'm the Holiday Hog." Jim replied  
"Like I said, a pig." Grissom repeated, yet again  
"Look, I'm the Holiday Hog, so why don't you just EAT ME!" Jim said with raised tones

Warrick and Nick witnessed the exchange between Grissom and Brass and quickly, they were attheir side, ready to intervene. Warrick placed his hand on Grissom's shoulder and watch as  
the expression on his boss's face changed from one of antagonism to one of near fright.Warrick escorted Grissom outside to get some fresh air, while back inside, Nick was asking  
Brass what the problem was.

"He's bombed, no more to it." Jim stated  
"Well, if you need a hand, just let me know, ok?" he offered  
"Thanks, man." Jim replied

Outside, Grissom and Warrick were sitting on the concrete wall out front of the lab whenCatherine showed up with a mug of coffee, handing it to Gil.

"Here, drink this. It'll wake you up." she said, extending the mug to Grissom  
"I never thought he would do something like this." Gil mumbled  
"Like what?" Catherine asked  
"Steal Sara from me." he replied  
"Gil, Sara was never yours, and besides, the whole time she's been here, you've kept herat arms length, making your intentions well known. You avoid any and every romantic advanceshe's made, so can you blame her for moving on?" Warrick stated  
"I just never thought she'd move on with Jim." Gil replied

TBC?


	8. CH 8

"Look, Gil. As long as I've known you, you've been closed off. And in being closed off, you've pushed a lot of people away. You cant've expected her to wait for you forever. I know you don'twant to hear this, but she and Jim really are very happy. Why can't you be the bigger man andjust wish them their happiness?" Catherine pointed out

"Because I'd be lying, that's why." he replied  
"You've been lying to yourself for the longest time. What makes this any different? Huh?"she asked  
"Because I love her, that's why." he replied simply

Catherine and Warrick continued to try and make Gil understand, but he seemed stuck on the factthat he supposedly loved Sara. After about an hour or so of intervention, Catherine and Warrickgave up and went back inside to make sure things were ok with Jim and Sara.

In the break room, Jim, Greg, Sara and Nick were all seated around the conference tablediscussing the wedding plans. Jim expressed that in light of Grissom's recent behaviour, he  
would no longer be a candidate for best man. Upon hearing this, Greg offered his services.

"Hey, if its a best man you want, then feel free to call on me. I'd love to be involved."  
"Thanks, Greggo. I'll take you up on that." Jim replied  
"And I'll throw you a monster of a bachelor party, too."

To this, Jim just grinned a sheepish grin and turned to Sara, who was mindlessly scribbling on asheet of paper. Just then, Catherine walked in and took the seat next to Sara.

"How's things goin' in here?" she asked  
"Agh, you know, bachelor party talk. Greg's gonna be best man." Sara replied  
"I can just see it now, a bunch of drunken geeks ogling some exotic dancer and shoving twentydollar bills in her thong." Catherine commented

That night Grissom went home to sober up and Catherine took over as A/. She had done it beforeand was no stranger to handling Grissom's case load. Nick and Warrick had been given a deadbody that had been found in a culvert and Sara had her own case for once. It had been weekssince she had been able to work by herself and after tonight's episode, she was grateful for  
the reprieve.

She pulled up in front of her scene and hopped out, kit in hand. Just as she approached the frontdoor of the house, Jim pulled up in his Buick Park Avenue. Seeing her, he wanted to run up to  
her and plant a big fat kiss on her lips, but this was work and not the place for affection.

"Wait, don't go in there." he shouted  
"Why not?" she asked  
"Because it hasn't been cleared yet, that's why." he replied, passing in front of her

While Jim cleared the house, Sara waited outside on the front lawn. He was upstairs when heheard a shout followed by weapon's fire. He rushed downstairs to see Sara on the ground graspingher shoulder. As he rushed through the front door and out to the grass, he dropped to his kneesand held her head in his hands.

"What happened?"  
"He came running from behind the house. He pulled a gun and shot me." she explained  
"Where'd he go?"  
"He ran down that way." she said, getting to her feet

Jim took off down the street and after a few hundred yards, he stopped. Pulling out his cellphone, he dialed emergency and ran back to the scene and Sara. She stood on the curb as Jim ran  
up to her asking if she was alright. Looking down at her shoulder, she surveyed the damage.

"Through and through. I'm fine." she said  
"I called rescue, they should be here presently." he said, checking her wound  
"I'm fine, Jim. Its just a bit sore, that's all. Give me a hand here and I can get to work."she said, walking back to her truck

Sara sat on the tailgate of the truck and administered some battlefield first aid. There waslittle blood loss and since the shot went all the way through, she dressed front and back with  
some gauze pads and 3-M first aid tape. She downed 800mg of ibuprofen and grabbed her kit withher good hand. Jim was stunned to see her so intent on not going to hospital. She didn't seemhindered at all as she walked in the house and began to process.

Afraid that she might pass out or something like that, Jim followed her around the house as shetook notes, placed markers and snapped photos of the crime scene. While kneeling beside a setof muddy footprints, Sara pulled out her camera and popped off a few shots. When stood up shewobbled a bit and braced herself on the wall beside her. Rushing to her aid, Jim caught her andguided her to a nearby chair.

"Here, sit down. What the hell is taking rescue so damn long?" he wondered aloud  
"I'm fine, Jim. I just stood up too fast, that's all." she said, her eyes closed  
"Here, lay down." he said, helping her up and over to the couch

He lay Sara down and as he cursed the paramedics, he pulled out his cell and called the lab.Catherine picked up Gil's phone.

"Catherine, this is Jim. Sara's been shot at her scene." he said, short of breath  
"What happened, Jim?"  
"Some guy jumped out from behind the house and shot her. She'll live. It was a through andthrough. But the medics have yet to show up. I'm gonna take her in. I just wanted to let you  
know." he explained

"Ok, Jim. I'll let them know. You just keep her safe, ok?"  
"As if you have to tell me that twice." he stated

"You heard what the doc said. No work for at least a week. I intend to see to it that his ordersare honoured." Jim stated

"So, what are you gonna do, cuff me to the bed?" Sara countered  
"Hey, now that's an idea." he said thoughtfully  
"Yeah, promises, promises."

Jim left Sara at home and went back to the lab. No sooner had he set foot outside and climbedinto his car, then Sara's cell phone rang. She picked it up without looking at the caller ID.

"Yes?"  
"Sara, this is Gil. I heard about your accident. Are you ok?"  
"Are you sober? I won't talk with you while you're drunk."  
"Yes, I'm sober. I wanted to apologize for the scene earlier. I was totally out of line."  
"Yes, you were. Grissom, I want to be your friend. You're still important to me. Had it not beenfor you, I'd be an astrophysicist right now or something like that. I owe you a lot. Can we  
still be friends?" she asked cautiously

"I'd like that very much. Hey, I was going to get something to eat. You wanna join me? We canmend some fences." he offered

"Where were you thinking of going?"  
"I dunno. You pick."  
"Ok, I'll be over in 30 minutes."  
"Ok, I'll be waiting."

Sara climbed in her truck and drove the twenty minutes to Grissom's place. When she got there, hewas on the front steps with a white rose in his hand. Approaching her car, he held the flowerout and smiled. Sara could not help but smile back as he climbed in beside her. Turning to her,he chuckled.

"Flores por a los muertos." he said

Sara knew her Spanish wasn't the best, but from what he had said, it sounded something like"Flowers for the dead." Taking the rose, she put it in a water bottle that was in her cupholder. Maybe he just got the translation wrong, she thought to herself.

Driving the streets of Las Vegas, they went in search of a cafe or restaurant that was open at04:00. They settled on one of the casino hotels and sat at a booth near the back. Sara was not  
hungry and truth be told, neither was Grissom, so they just ordered some coffee and talkedabout how they could best remain friends. Sara had expressed her concern about her relationshipwith Jim and how she feared that Grissom might retaliate in some way. He stated that although hewas less than thrilled about her engagement to Jim, he would never do something so selfish aslash out at her and compromise her job at the lab.

Over the course of the next couple of hours Sara and Grissom caught up on each other's lives andthings that were important to them, like friends, family and success in life. At around 07:00hrs, they left the casino and walked down the promenade. The sun was just coming up and this madethe very first time that they were to see the sunrise while not in a working capacity.

09:00hrs and Sara had just returned home. She was wide awake as she pulled up in front of herapartment, so she decided to go for a walk. She watched the school busses pass by and as she  
wandered aimlessly, she eventually found herself at the lab, which was a good couple of milesfrom her place. Walking through the double doors, she went to the break room to see if anyonewas still there, or if everyone had gone home already. She found Catherine in Gil's office andas she entered, she announced herself.

"Hey, Cath."  
"Sara, you're supposed to be home resting."  
"I know. I just couldn't get to sleep, so I went for a walk and I wound up here." she explained  
"So, what'd I miss? Anything good?"  
"Well, Warrick and Nick broke up a fight between two drag queens. Apparently, one of them triedto gouge Nick's eyes out. He went to hospital for treatment." Catherine explained

"What about Greg?"  
"He's in DNA. He should still be here."  
"Good." Sara replied, standing up "Thanks, Cath"

In DNA, Greg was finishing up the day's work and as he hopped down off his stool, he was startledby Sara. A huge smile on his face, he greeted her with their customary hug.

"Hey, you're supposed to be at home. I was gonna pick up some bagels and coffee and stop by."  
"Well, since we're both here, lets go, then." she suggested  
"Ok, let's go."

At her apartment, Sara was busy fixing breakfast when a knock came at her front door. As she wasknee deep in waffle batter, she asked Greg to get the door. Jumping off the couch, he openedthe door to see Jim standing outside on the landing.

"Hey, man." he said, gesturing to the interior

Jim entered the apartment and walked through to the kitchen to find Sara flipping her waffle iron. Seeing Jim, she smiled wide and greeted him with a kiss. Out of a need to protect her, Jim  
checked her dressings and when he was satisfied that she was ok, he went to the bedroom tochange into something more comfortable. Greg was in the kitchen helping Sara with the food andwhen Jim had changed and come from the bedroom, the table had been set and the two were waitingfor him.

Taking a seat across from Sara, Jim enquired as to the reason for Greg's presence.

"Oh, I was at the lab and about ready to leave when she showed up. I was gonna come by anywaywith some bagels and shmear, but she beat me to it." he explained

"You went back to the lab? Why?" Jim asked, confused  
"I went for a walk and wound up there." she replied  
"Are you sure you're feeling alright? I'd hate for you to over exert yourself."  
"I'm fine. Besides, I like Greggo, here. He's good company." she stated  
"I know, he's best man."

After breakfast, Sara went to lay down and Jim and Greg stayed in the living room discussing thedetails of the wedding which was to be on Sunday week. Everything was to be outside, weatherpermitting and the reception would be a casual affair. There would be no tux's nor any fancygowns of silk and satin. This was to be a "come as you are" event. For that, Greg was glad, ashe had already decided what he was going to wear. Looking over at Jim, Greg wondered aloud ifeveryone knew this.

When it came time for the bachelor's party, Greg was uncharacteristically tight lipped. Everytime Jim asked him what was going to happen, he'd clam up and change the topic. Several timeshe even left the room entirely. All were in agreement that the bachelor's party was to be atthe house, as Sara's party was to be at Catherine's and a sleep over affair. Greg knew this,  
and that made his plans all the more sweeter.

"Greg, come on. What's the entertainment?" he plied  
"Nope, not gonna tell. That would defeat the whole purpose of hiring the entertainment that I'vechosen."  
"Ok, but as long as they're not fat, nasty, have a generally displeasing countenance or manhands. You know what I like."

"Yeah, I know what you like. And you'll love this. I swear." Greg stated

It was time for work and as Jim was set to leave, Sara grabbed her pack and headed out with Jim.On the front porch, he turned and looked at her suspiciously.

"Where are you going?"  
"I'm going to the lab. No scene work, just paperwork."  
"Sara..."  
"Jim, you know that if I'm cooped up at home all week I'll be a raving bitch. This is ineveryone's best interest, believe me." she interjected

"Ok, but if it gets too crazy you've got to promise me that you'll back down."  
"Promise." she replied

And with that they pulled out of the drive and headed in to the lab. When they arrived, Gil wassitting at his desk filling out a form of some sort. Looking up as they passed by, Grissom  
smiled at the two of them. Considering the events of the previous day, Jim was a bit shockedthat Gil would even bother acknowledging either of them. As Jim kept his eyes in front of  
himself, Sara turned and smiled. Grissom smiled back then returned to his papers.

The slips having been handed out and everyone gone to the respective scenes, Sara stayed at thelab and holed up in Gil's office filling out paperwork of her own. They chatted and joked aroundduring the night and when it came time for meal break, they went to the diner across the way.

Sitting in the "Geek Booth" as it was known, the two of them enjoyed their drinks and when thewaitress came to take their orders, Sara shocked him by ordering meat. After the waitress left,Grissom addressed this.

"I thought you were vegetarian."  
"I am, but for the last few weeks I've been craving meat. Its odd really." she explained

Gil thought about this and he immediately thought that she might be pregnant. Given her moodslately and her craving of meat, it seemed like a distinct possibility. Not sure how to best  
approach the subject, Grissom chose his words very carefully. Finally, after the waitress haddelivered their meals, he spoke up.

"Um, Sara...do you think that you could be...um, you know?"  
"What? What's this in regards to?" she asked  
"Your cravings. Do you think that you could be..."  
"Pregnant? No. I mean, I just...you know, a few weeks ago."  
"Yeah, and you said that's when you started craving. Maybe we should pay a visit to the pharmacyjust to be on the safe side." he suggested

Sara thought long and hard about Grissom's words and upon further reflection, she realized thatit had, in fact been closer to five weeks since her last period. As this dawned on her, she  
scarfed down the rest of her meal and waited impatiently as Gil took his time. After a fewminutes, she waved the waitress by and asked for the check.

Back at the lab, it was about two and a half hours later than it was when they left for theirmeals. Sitting in the locker room, Sara looked down at the box in her hand and read and re-read  
the instructions. Standing by the door, Gil watched her and smiled. She was nervous, of that hewas certain. He decided to give her a helping hand. Entering and sitting beside her, Grissom  
grinned and took her hand in his.

"We'll do this together. Come on. Go in, pee on the little stick and we'll wait for the resultstogether."  
"Thanks, Grissom."

She got up and shuffled her way into one of the stalls and did her business. A few moments later,she emerged and walked over to where Grissom was standing. He was leaning on the edge of the  
table just under the window with his arms crossed across his chest. Placing the test on thetable top, on top of the paper towel that Gil had laid out, she nervously tapped her foot on  
the floor and began twirling her hair around her index finger.

Grissom's watch went off and Sara snapped her head up. Looking over at Gil, she frowned andlooked away.

"I can't do it. You do it." she said

Picking the test up, Gil looked at the indicator patches and grinned. Sara could hear hisslight laughter and when she looked back up at him, he wrapped her in a great big hug and  
whispered into her ear.

"Hi, Mommy."

Sara's hands began to tremble and she got a bit light headed. In no way was she ready to have achild. Her job was far too important to her and at this point in her life, she wasn't ready to  
give that up or even put it on hold. She and Jim never really discussed having kids, but whenshe saw him with children, at a scene or anywhere else, she could see that he loved them  
and had no doubt that he would make an excellent father. Ellie, as far as she was concerned,was a fluke. The fact that her mother had cheated on Jim and that she was raised in a house  
where animosity flowed like the healing waters from the fountain at Lourdes didn't help thingsmuch either. Lord only knows how Jim survived in that hell hole for as long as he did. Howwould she tell Jim that he was going to be a afather again?

Hours later and as Gil and Sara sat in his office going through their own paperwork, she lookedup when she heard the footsteps of some people returning from their scenes. Warrick andCatherine walked down the hall and as they passed Gil's office they grinned and whispered toeach other. About an hour and a half after Warrick and Catherine returned, Greg and Nick cameback. Everyone went on about their business and when the end of shift came, they were more thanhappy to leave.

The week passed by very quickly and before he knew it, Jim was staring down the contents of asmall jeweler's box. Inside was a beautiful gold ring with small emeralds and sapphires set  
into it. Yeah, it was similar to Sara's engagement ring, but he knew what she liked and hewould do everything in his power to see to it that she was and stayed happy. Surprisingly  
enough, Sara had proved very easy to please. She rarely, if ever, asked anything of Jim andwhen she did, it was usually something small like picking something up from the market on hisway home or dropping something off at the post office.

Sara had gone over to Catherine's for the evening for her own bachelorette's party. Catherinewould not be there until a bit later, due to some work that she needed to complete that night.  
At Catherine's house, Sara, Wendy and Josette sat watching chick flicks and painting eachother's nails.

However, over at Jim's house, the party was just getting underway. There was a heated poker gamein which Warrick was currently losing his shirt. It had been some time since he had gambled andhe was out of practice. Just as Nick won the current hand, Greg excused himself to thebathroom and to make a phone call. Taking this as an opportunity to get another beer, Jim wentto the kitchen and pulled out a six pack.

Looking in his room for a change of footwear, Jim heard excerpts of Greg's conversation. Hedidn't hear everything, but what he did hear was enough to pique his curiosity. It seemed as  
though he was securing arrangements for the "entertainment" such as it was. He could tell thatthe young man had gone to quite a bit of trouble, as he was pleading with the person on the  
other end of the line. He could be heard to say, "I owe you big time" and "I swear, I'll neverask you for anything ever again". A smile on his face, Jim emerged from his room and sat onthe couch with the rest of his colleagues.

Finally, around 22:00hrs, the entertainment arrived in the form of a belly/lap dancer. As Gregguided the woman inside, he directed her to the guest room where she could put the final  
touches on her costume. About ten minutes later and everyone was seated on the couch or inchairs, the party REALLY started.

Her boom box set on the coffee table and the music playing, she sashayed about and came to standright in front of Jim. The sound of Sitar, Naal, Bamboo flute, Saraswati and Pakhawaj was to beheard as the men were hypnotized by the sensual, rhythmic chords. Her outfit was authenticenough, dressed in a long, flowing red/orange skirt with sequins, an orange/yellow bra, beadedveil and red/orange shoulder wrap. Moving ever closer to Jim, the dancer hovered mere inchesabove his lap and slowly hiked up her skirt for better motility. As she leaned forward, herlips hung centimeters from his moist hungry mouth. For the first time in months Jim had thoughtsabout being with someone other than Sara, but being the loyal and devoted man that he was, hetried to picture Sara dressed in the incredibly visually appealing outfit. Her bangles jingledas she swayed her arms about, chiming her finger cymbals.

Jim had had lap dances before, but this one, he had to give Greg credit, was by far the best. Themen looked on in stunned fascination as Jim white knuckled the edges of his chair and blinkedseveral times in amazement at the talent and efficacy of this beautiful woman in his lap.Looking the dancer over, Jim took in everything from her intoxicating perfume oil that smelledof patchouli to her belly ring that was actually a diamond stud. As her hips gyrated, he wastransfixed and became a bit light headed. In a moment of weakness, he let go of his chair andbrought his hands to rest on her hips, his fingers lightly caressing her milky white, soft skin.

His mouth scant inches from her navel, Jim licked a trail from the bra, between her breasts downto her navel and finally to the hip line of her shirt that rode low on her hips. Swirling his  
tongue in circles, he removed her belly ring and held it in his mouth for a few seconds beforetaking it out and returning it to her in one piece. Her eyes widened as she looked at the piece  
of jewelry in her hand and she smiled at him. Taking a few seconds to return the ring to itshome, she looked at the other men and moved on to Nick, who was presently drooling.

Over the next two hours all the men got dances of their own and as Greg gazed at the beautifulbelly dancer in his lap and tried for the life of him not to let his body win out over his mind.  
No doubt this woman was incredibly beautiful, but the last thing he wanted was to have made afool of himself at his friend's bachelor party. This dancer was well worth the effort andtrouble he had gone to in order to have her here for Jim.

At the tail end of her performance, the dancer returned to Jim's lap for one last "hurrah", asit were. This time she got a bit closer than she had the first time and as her centre came into  
contact with Jim's ever growing arousal, he got squirrelly and attempted to excuse himself, butshe wouldn't allow it. She leaned in and with her lips right next to Jim's ear, she whispered.

"Having fun, Jim?"

Snapping his head up and gazing into the eyes of the woman, he realized who it was. Oh, my God,he thought to himself as he searched her face, trying to confirm his suspicions. Quickly, he  
whipped his head around to see Greg sitting there with an enormous grin on his face.

Catherine came home around 00:30hrs and when she came in the door, she dropped her bag rightnext to the hall table. Sara, Wendy and Josette were in the middle of watching Kate and Leopoldas Catherine dropped down on the couch next to Sara. Seeing the tired look on her friend's face,she asked after her.

"That kind of day, huh?"  
"Yeah. I swear, I'm so tired I could drop right here." she stated  
"Catherine, you're sweating. Do you have a fever?" Wendy asked  
"No. Nothing like that. I just had to take care of a few last minute details before tomorrow,that's all."

Handing the hostess a glass of wine, Josette pressed play and they watched their last movie forthe night. When the film had ended, they all bedded down for the night; Sara and Catherine in  
her room, Josette in Lindsay's room and Wendy on the pull out couch in the living room.

By the time the ladies had gone to bed the boys were just getting into a movie that Jim had heard about during the Kleinfeld case; Armagettiton. The movie was well worth the wait as a good time was had by all. Finally, around 03:00hrs, they all passed out where they sat; Greg on the floor in front of the couch, Nick on the couch, Warrick in the guest room and Jim in the Magic Fingers chair.

It was around noon when Sara et al arrived at Jim's house. As they walked inside, they could seethe remnants of a night well spent. There were empty beer bottles and shot glasses all over the  
place as well as bowls of pretzels and potato chips. Seeing Jim passed out in his favouritechair, Sara shuffled over to him and dropped down in his lap. The sudden change of pressure woke  
him and as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he saw the other women standing around.

Hung over would have been an understatement; Jim was fer schnikit. He smelled of Tequila andbeer. Shifting his weight, he climbed out from under Sara and woke the rest of the wedding  
party. The residence was a madhouse for the next hour as the men showered and got dressed forthe day's events. It was like having a house full of teen-agers with everyone clambering for  
the shower at the same time.

Around 14:00hrs, Grissom pulled up to the house and pulled out his cell phone and called Sara'scell. Waiting for her to pick up, he felt the nervous knots in his stomach and he questions of  
he should really be there at all. Just as he was about to leave and go back home, she picked up.

"Hi, Grissom."  
"Hey, Sara. Are you sure you want to go ahead with this? I mean, you don't think Jim would deckme, do you?" he asked cautiously

"No, I think he'll be fine. If I'm ok with you he should be ok with you." she explained  
"Ok. I'm out front. Should I come in?" he asked  
"Yeah, come on in."

Climbing out of his car, Gil made his way up the front steps and just then, she opened the door.They greeted each other with a big hug and Grissom placed a kiss on her cheek. Stepping inside,  
Gil could see the house was bustling with activity of all sorts. People were wandering aroundhalf dressed with blank expressions on their faces. As Grissom helped himself to a mug ofcoffee, Jim came in and when he saw Gil, he stopped in his tracks. With a look of confusion onhis face, he went in search of Sara.

Sara was in the bedroom fixing her hair when Jim came in and closed the door behind him. Sittingon the edge of the bed, he spoke up.

"Did you know that Gil is here?" he asked  
"Yeah, I know. I invited him." she stated  
"Why? After what he said last week, I'd just as soon kick him in the teeth than invite him intomy house." Jim growled

"We had a talk and things are fine. We ironed things out. He's here for me." she explained  
"Ok, if you say so."  
"I say so. He's fine, Jim. I need him in my life. He's more then just a boss to me; he's a closeand dear friend. I need to know that you're ok with this." she said softly as she sat next to  
Jim on the bed

"I trust your judgment." he replied, taking her hand and kissing the top of it  
"Well, that having been said, you need to leave so I can get dressed." she said,ushering him out of the room

"Dressed for what? I thought this was a casual thing."  
"It is, but that doesn't mean that I can't wear something special." she answered

Closing the door behind Jim, Sara returned to her outfit. She struggled with her hair for a fewminutes before realizing that she needed an extra set of hands. Poking her head out of the room,she got Grissom's attention and motioned for him to come in. Making sure that Jim was nowherearound to see Gil enter the bedroom, Sara quickly closed the door behind him. Moving into themaster bathroom, she explained what she needed him to do. As she applied her make up, Giltwirled several locks of hair and clipped them in place to create a beautiful series of curlsthat combined to make a beautiful tress. In a moment of uncharacteristic creativity, he took  
some baby's breath from the rose vase on the dresser and incorporated them into her coif.Looking in the mirror as he did this, Sara beamed.

"I missed you, Grissom. And you're a true friend to help me out with this." she said, tearing slightly  
"That's what friends are for." he replied  
"For you to be here for me today, you're more than a friend; you're family and that will neverchange."

They hugged each other and as Gil sprayed some spray gel in her hair, she began to weep. Notquite sure what to do, but not wanting to seem insensitive, he wrapped his arms around her and  
hugged her until it came time for the procession to walk down the aisle.

Outside, Jim was dressed in faded jeans, his blue FOP polo shirt and bare feet as he stood,waiting for his bride to make her entrance. Greg, as best man, was dressed in something  
uncharacteristically normal, as compared to what he would usually wear. His khaki pantshad been ironed as had his t-shirt that read "Private Property". His hair was freshly streaked  
and spiked and his teeth, which were shown prominently, were unusually white, even for him.

The music began to play and as Jim looked behind him, he saw Sara in a white linen sun dresswith her hair done up beautifully. She was truly a vision of beauty and elegance. As sheapproached the makeshift altar, Jim noticed the man on her arm, escorting her down the aisle;Grissom.

TBC?


	9. Chapter 9

Their vows had been made and rings had been exchanged between Jim and Sara. Now was the time for the reception and it went off without a hitch. The food was great, the drink was plentiful and there was no cheesy DJ, just a boom box which played various cds; when one would end someone would pull another one from the stack beside and put it on play. When the reception was over everyone went home except the members of the team who stayed behind to clean up. 

While everyone was cleaning up, Jim and Sara were busy packing for their honeymoon. They'd be going East, to Shenandoah Park and Skyline Drive. They'd be spending their honeymoon in the mountains. Jim had made reservations months in advance and as Jim took their packed bags out to the front porch until the cab showed up; about 30 minutes. When the cab finally showed up, people were still in the house cleaning up and as Jim announced that the cab had shown up, they were seen off by the team. As they drove off there were shouts, hoots and hollers from everyone as they waved Jim and Sara off.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Jim and Sara were admiring the waterfall on the White Oak Trail and taking lots of fun photos to show the lab guys when they got back. They were having a great time in the wilderness and the following day they took a trip up to Big Meadows, which was really nothing but a big meadow. There were lot's of deer around and Jim and Sara took several photos of them as well. They were having such a good time that it seemed as though the time flew by and before they knew it, it was time for them to return to Vegas.

Sara still hadn't told Jim that she was pregnant. She had no real reason why, she supposed that she was waiting for the right time. But there had been plenty of chances for her to tell him and thinking inwardly, she supposed that she was afraid of his reaction. What if he didn't want more children. What if he flipped out and demanded that she get rid of it. There were so many "What Ifs", that she nearly drove herself insane. It wasn't until about a week after they returned that Jim found out about Sara's doctor's appointment. When he asked her about it she said she was just going for a general wellness check-up. However, Jim had the name of the doctor and looked him up in the phonebook and saw that he was a fertility specialist. This was Jim's first clue as to what might be going on. The confirmation came when he looked through her planner and saw the date and time of the appointment and showed up at the doctor's office to see Sara waiting in chairs. He sat beside her and asked her why she had lied about the appointment. She explained that she had taken several pregnancy tests and they all came up positive and that she wanted to be sure before she told him. She also told him that she was afraid about what his reaction would be. She didn't know if he would be happy or upset and for this, she had been going crazy these last several weeks.

As Jim and Sara sat waiting, her name was called and she and Jim went into one of the exam rooms to wait for the nurse and doctor. It was about ten minutes before anyone showed up and when they did, it was the nurse with one of those paper gowns. The nurse asked Sara to remove her shirt and put on the paper gown and said that the doctor would be in shortly. Shortly turned out to be thirty minutes and as Sara sat on the exam bed, she suddenly felt very uncomfortable. She was having second doubts and having Jim there with her didn't help things any. She tensed up when the doctor and nurse came in with an ultrasound machine. Sara was asked to lay back and pull up the bottom of the gown to expose her belly. The doctor applied some cold gel to Sara's abdomen and began to move the wand over and across her stomach. Jim watched the screen and saw one of the most beautiful things he'd ever seen; his unborn child. Sara was far enough along that the doctor was able to determine the sex of the fetus. He asked if Jim and Sara wanted to know the sex and they did. It was to be a boy. And not just one, but two of them; Sara was going to have twins and Jim was ecstatic. He rushed to Sara's side and hugged and kissed her on her forehead.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

They wouldn't be able to hide Sara's condition for long and in a building full of investigators it would be even harder. I mean, these people were trained to sniff out clues and piece things together. Some of them were already suspicious because Sara had started eating meat again. Grissom hadn't told anyone anything, as he liked the idea that he was the first person to find out that she was pregnant. There were rumours flying around the lab but no one could confirm anything. They dropped little hints and such, but Jim and Sara just politely changed the subject or dismissed the idea as scuttlebutt.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Sitting in Grissom's office, Sara sat across from him and smiled widely. He asked her what she was so happy about and was genuinely happy to hear her response.

"For certain, I'm pregnant. However, I'm gonna have twins. And that's not the half of it; they're gonna be twin boys. I'm about three months along, give or take a week or so." she explained

"I'm happy for you. Truly happy for you." he said with a heavy heart

Truth be told, he was still carrying a torch for her.

"I have to ask you not to tell anyone. If this got out there'd be nonstop questions and I really don't need that right now. Right now, all I need to do is my job. Do we have a deal?"

"Yes, we have a deal." he replied

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Shift had come and gone and as Sara waited for Jim to pick her up it started raining. She went inside where she stood just behind the double doors and watched for Jim's car. She stood there for half an hour before she finally called his cell phone. He didn't pick up and this worried Sara. She finally got a ride home from Grissom. Jim's car wasn't in the drive and as she sat in Grissom's car, she expressed her worries. After a brief conversation, Sara pulled out her cell and called the precinct. She spoke with the receptionist and was told that about half an hour prior, Jim was involved in a car accident and that he was presently at Desert Palm Hospital. Tears in her eyes, she told Grissom and made to get out of the car and drive over there.  
However, Grissom didn't feel that she was in any state to be driving, so he drove her over there himself.

When they arrived at hospital, Sara jumped out of Grissom's car before he had a chance to stop. He never thought she'd jump from a moving vehicle, but he'd just seen her do it. She ran inside and stopped at the charge desk. She asked about Jim and was told that he was still in surgery and that she had to wait. She made it pointedly clear that she was his wife and that she demanded to know what was going on. Instead of information, she was given forms to fill out while she waited anxiously for any news regarding Jim. By this time Grissom had parked and come in to keep Sara company while she waited for news on Jim. They were there for several hours before the doctor came out and explained the situation as it stood. Looking at Sara, the doctor sighed and took the empty seat beside her.

"Your husband was in a serious car accident this morning. Apparently he went head to head with a dump truck and lost. He sustained several serious injuries; almost every bone on the left side of his body was broken. He has a few nasty gashes on his face as well as a black eye from the airbag. Apparently, one of the lenses of his sunglasses popped out when the airbag deployed and jammed into his eye orbit and broken nose. We had to remove his spleen and right now he's unconscious; but not because of the sedatives. He's in a coma. He could come out in a day. He could come out in a week or a month. He might never come out. You have to consider that possibility. The accident was very serious and frankly, we're all astonished that he's made it this far. If you want to see him, you're more than welcome, but I warn you; he's not pretty." the doctor explained

He escorted Sara and Grissom to Jim's room and when Sara saw him she collapsed to the floor, sobbing. Grissom helped her up and planted her in a chair and pushed it up to Jim's bedside. She took his hand in hers and held it to her face while she wept. He really was in bad shape and from the looks of him, Grissom wasn't sure if Jim would pull through. I mean, the man was strong willed, but there are limits to what the will of someone can accomplish.

Sara felt a bit selfish when she began thinking about her pregnancy and the twins and how they hadn't even changed their wills, to include the other. They were only married a few weeks and now this happens. Sara wondered what she was going to do if Jim didn't come around.

Standing in the corner of the hospital room, Grissom made himself and Sara a silent promise that he was going to look after her until Jim came back. But by the looks of things, Jim might not make it. He was being kept alive by countless machines; one that breathed for him, another that monitored his life signs, another that measured brainwave activity and an IV. Jim was truly in very poor shape.

As Sara continued to hold Jim's hand, Grissom went outside and called Catherine on her cell. He told her about Jim and that he was in pretty bad shape. He asked her to inform the team, as he was sure they'd want to know the details. Nick and Warrick were the first team members to find out, followed immediately by Greg who happened to come walking in the room just as Catherine was telling Nick and Warrick. They all immediately drove to hospital to see Jim and to console Sara.

When they arrived en masse to see Jim, they went to his room and just as Nick entered Jim's room he flat-lined. Doctors and nurses came rushing in with a paddle cart and attempted to jumpstart Jim's heart.


	10. Chapter 10

The sound of the machine, the high pitched whine in a monotonous tone, was more than Sara could bear to hear. She was pushed to the side as the doctor and nurses tried to jumpstart Jim's heart. They shocked him three times before he came back online with a normal heartbeat. After Jim had been stabilized the nurses had come to check on him every half hour, nearly on the dot. He never coded after that; he just lay there, as silent as the grave. It was a bit morbid to think of Jim in that way, but it was true. In Jim's room, you'd find more cheer in a graveyard. 

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

It had been two weeks since the accident and Jim was still in his coma. Sara sat vigil by his bedside when she'd come off shift. She proudly wore her ring and made certain that Jim had his ring on as well. She sat at Jim's bedside, as per usual, with his hand in hers and stroked it with her thumb. She cried for him to wake up. Day after day, she cried; almost to the point where the tears would no longer come.

Grissom had been keeping an eye on Sara as had Nick. As Nick was one of her closest friends, he'd pick her up for shift and drop her at home afterward. He did this everyday. When she was on shift and at a scene, it was Grissom's turn to keep an eye out for her and make sure she was taking care of herself and her pregnancy.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

One morning, when Sara was at home, she was reading through Jim's will she stumbled across something most disturbing. There was a provision that stated that if Jim were ever in a coma or persistent vegetative state for thirty days, then he wished for life support to be terminated. Immediately after reading this, she rushed to the hospital and began trying to rouse Jim. About an hour after she arrived, Grissom showed up. She told him of the provision in Jim's will and how it worried her. Grissom stated that he knew this because before Jim got married, he was the one with medical power of attourney. However, after the marriage, medical power of attourney was shifted to Sara; only she didn't know it. He did manage to change that bit, but it was unattached to his will; separate.

Sara got up to use the bathroom and as she washed her hands she could hear talking coming from the direction of Jim's bed. She quickly dried her hands and rushed out to see Grissom talking to Jim who had suddenly awakened. Sara stood at the foot end of Jim's bed and looked at him and he looked back at her blankly. Seeing this, Grissom went to see the charge nurse and asked for his breathing tube removed. Within minutes the tube was removed and Jim tried to talk, but couldn't due to his sore throat. When asked how he felt, Jim was at a loss for words. When asked if he remembered Grissom or Sara he said he didn't. It quickly became apparent that Jim had some form of amnesia. He couldn't remember anyone, nor could he remember who he was or what his profession was. The truth was that Jim's amnesia might subside and it might not. There was no telling if or when he'd remember anything.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

It had been a week and a half since Jim had woken up and his memory still hadn't returned. He had been told that he was married to Sara and that he was a homicide detective, along with other little bits of information that everyone thought might prove of some use, but nothing seemed to jog his memory.

He was released this morning and when Sara showed up to collect him, she saw him dressed and sitting on the edge of his bed looking at a framed photo off the two of them. She knocked on the door jamb and entered only to have him look up at her with a blank expression on his face. He turned to look at her and gave a weak smile.

"We were happy." he said

A bit hesitant, she replied.

"Yes, we were."

Jim was ready to leave as he was going a little crazy sitting around his hospital room everyday. Sitting in the passenger seat as Sara drove them home, there were so many questions he wanted to ask, so many things he wanted to know about himself, about her, his job and his friends. The doctor said that taking him home might help him remember things a little quicker. So, as they pulled up his drive and Sara parked the car, she helped Jim inside and took his bag to the bedroom as Jim stood in the living room and looked around. He saw photos on shelves, commendations hanging on his wall and some ice hockey equipment propped up in the corner of his den with pictures of him in full gear-up.

Sara came from the bedroom and as Jim stood staring at the walls, she asked him if he was hungry; to which he answered that he wasn't. All he wanted to do was to remember what his life was like before the accident and for that he'd have to immerse himself in his previous life. First he'd try to familiarize himself with his house and Sara and then he move on to the lab and the precinct.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Sara was asleep as Jim wandered through the house picking up photo frames, books and other little things that might remind him of something. He sat on the couch and began to flip through the channels as he tried to familiarize himself with the programming he might have liked to watch. After about an hour, he tired of the tellie and walked over to the bookshelf. He found several photo albums filled with photos of he and Sara, some of the team members in their off hours, a camping trip that the team took several years back, several photos of he and Grissom and other photos. He focused on the photos of people from his everyday life and tried to remember as much as he could. When he viewed photos of he and Sara he got a feeling in his gut.  
He focused on those photos the most. They were always smiling and looked very happy; especially the wedding photos. The last photo he saw was one of he and Sara with his hand on her stomach. The writing beneath it read "And Babies make Four."

He didn't remember the wedding, but when he saw Sara he just got this feeling. Sure enough, he thought she was beautiful and was thankful that he had a woman to whom he was married and he didn't know if he liked children, he smiled when he saw the "Babies" photo. Either way, he was going to be a father whether he liked children or not.

Suddenly, there was a knock on his door and he got up and looked through the peep hole. He recognized the young man from the photo album. He was skinny, kind of on the tall-ish side and was wearing jeans, trainers and a t-shirt that read "Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut"; Greg. Jim opened the door and gave a vague look. Greg saw the photo albums on the coffee table and went over to the couch and picked one up. He and Jim sat on the couch and Greg helped him through the albums and photos. They sat and Greg explained the situation behind each photo as he was able. He had shown up to try to help Jim remember his past and was encouraged to see the albums on the coffee table.

"This is one from our camping trip at Meade a few years ago. See, that's you, Sara, Grissom, Nick and me. You got really bad poison ivy on that trip. You were scratching your ass for two weeks. But we all had a good time; especially Grissom who used the trip as an excuse to collect bugs." Greg explained

"Do we do things like that al lot? I mean, take group trips." Jim asked

"Not usually. You were very happy in your life at work and you loved your life with Sara. You've only been married a few weeks, but you two were dating for a while before you decided to get hitched." Greg explained

He looked down at the open album and saw the photo about the babies and smiled as he looked at the expression on Jim's face.

"Sara is pregnant? I had no idea, and I pride myself on my ability to sniff out interoffice gossip. She can't be that far along; you can't even tell." he said

"Yeah, I saw that one. Do I like kids?" Jim asked

Smiling heavily, Greg replied.

"You love kids; or at least you did. I think that once you hold your own child in your arms you'll come to appreciate just how much love one person can have for another. That love being different from your love for Sara; but being the love for your own flesh and blood. Your child will be the best of the two of you two. They'll have your intellect and Sara's curiosity and thirst for knowledge. And if you ever need a hand with him or her, don't hesitate to give me a call. I love kids and I'm great with them." Greg went on

"I'll certainly take you up on that." he replied

Looking over at Greg, Jim wondered how close they were, in light of his arrival at the house.

"We were friends. Not the closest of friends, mind you, but we got along well enough. That's the case with the rest of the team, save for you and Grissom. You two have known each other for, like, twelve years; at least. Last year you were shot and nearly died, but when you pulled through, the entire team was at hospital and we were all so glad that were still with us. It would have been a sad day, indeed, if we lost you. You're so important to all of us and we all love you; each of us in our own way. But make no mistake, you're loved by more than just Sara. When Nick was kidnapped a couple years ago and we found him, yours was one of the first faces he saw. It was an emotional time for all of us and yo kind of kept us all from losing our heads." Greg explained

By this time Sara had woken to the sound of voices in the living room. She dressed and came out to see Jim and Greg on the couch looking through the photo albums. She greeted Greg with a smile and shuffled into the kitchen for some coffee. While she set the pot brewing, she joined Greg and Jim in the living room.

"Catching up? Good. Photo albums are good. Sometimes images can jog one's memory." she said

"I got tired of flipping channels. I saw the albums and thought they might help me remember." he replied

"So, anything jog your memory yet?" she asked

"Nothing yet." he said

"Well, I suspect its only a matter of time. Are you guys hungry?"

"No." they both said at the same time

Sara went back into the kitchen and poured herself some coffee as well as some for Greg and Jim. She brought them their mugs and returned to the kitchen for hers. Coming into the living room and sitting beside Jim on the couch, she placed her hand on his knee.

"It'll happen. Just don't rush it. It'll come back on it's own." she assured him


End file.
